You Saved Me
by Zanessalover576
Summary: Gabriella was 25 years old woman who was homeless and had gone through a lot. Troy found Gabriella in a market and wanted to help her get her life on track. What will happen when Troy starts to help Gabriella and her walls start to come down?
1. Helping A Person Out

It was a dark and cloudy night in New York. A young girl who was probably twenty-five or twenty-six walked down the street. Her clothes were covered in dirt and water and her hair was knotted within itself. The young woman was walking to find a place to stay for the night. She didn't have a home. Her family abandoned her when she was a teenager. The woman's name was Gabriella. Gabriella walked down an alley and sat down by the wall. She took off her bag that carried everything she owned. Gabriella put the bag down on the ground and took out a little blanket and covered herself with it. This was not a life that a twenty-five year old woman should live. Gabriella heard noises coming from the alley and then saw a light. She tried to see who was coming her way. Gabriella then saw two men, who looked about thirty coming closer to her. She tried to run but the men caught her and pushed her against the alley wall. One of the men put a knife to her neck.

"Who do you work for?" the man asked.

Gabriella just shook her head. When Gabriella didn't answer, the man pushed the knife deeper against her neck. Gabriella cried in pain.

"I don't work for anyone" Gabriella said quietly.

The man took Gabriella behind a close by building and raped her. After the men were finished, they left Gabriella on the ground, helpless. Gabriella was not a prostitute, if that's what you are thinking. She couldn't even understand what it was. Gabriella heard a siren go off and stopped what she was doing. She heard a police officer start talking on the loud speaker.

"Put your hands where I can see them" the officer said.

Gabriella did as she was told. An officer walked over to her and escorted her to the squad car and helped her get into the car. The officer closed the door and walked to the driver's side and got in. Gabriella looked at the officer and got a better look at what he looked like.

"I'm good" Gabriella whispered.

"Ma'am we are going to take you to the station" the officer said.

"No, please" Gabriella pleaded.

"Do you have somewhere to stay?" the officer asked.

"No but I can-"Gabriella stopped.

"You are coming to the station" the officer said.

"My sister's house is a couple streets over. I will walk there" Gabriella lied.

"Alright, are you sure it's a couple streets over?" the officer asked.

"Yes, I swear" Gabriella said.

"Alright, off you go then" the officer said as he walked back to the car.

Gabriella started running and she stopped when she found a market. She walked in the market and looked around. Gabriella didn't have any money but she was used to sneaking things out of stores. She walked down the ready to eat aisle and picked up a sandwich. Gabriella then walked over to the exit of the market and heard the alarm go off, meaning that something was stolen.

"Ma'am, can I check your bag?" the store clerk asked.

"I'm sorry" Gabriella cried.

"Hey!" a guy yelled.

Gabriella and the sale associate looked up.

"She's with me" the man said.

Gabriella's heart started racing. The man came closer to her and took the sandwich out of Gabriella's hand. He gave it to the cashier and paid for it. The man then walked over to Gabriella and handed her the sandwich.

"Thank you" Gabriella said gratefully.

The man smiled.

"You are welcome. I'm Troy, what's your name?" Troy asked.

"Gabriella" Gabriella choked out.

"Nice to meet you Gabriella. Do you need a ride home?" Troy asked.

Gabriella was silent. Troy put his arm around Gabriella and they walked out of the market. Troy took Gabriella to his truck and helped her get in. Troy then walked over to the driver's side and got in.

"Where do you live?" Troy asked.

"No where. I'm homeless" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Do you have any relatives that live around here?" Troy asked.

"No" Gabriella said.

"Well then you will come to my house and we will figure out where you can stay" Troy said.

"Oh I can't. I mean, you don't need to feel sorry for me, Troy" Gabriella said.

"I insist" Troy said as he looked at Gabriella.

Gabriella nodded slightly and Troy smiled. Troy drove to his home and parked his car in the driveway. Gabriella and Troy got out of the car. Gabriella followed Troy to the front door. Troy unlocked the front door and the two adults walked into the house.

"I will show you to the guest room where you can put your things down" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella walked to the guest room.

"Here is where you will be staying. I am going to make some dinner. Do you like pasta?" Troy asked.

"Yes, but Troy if I may ask, why are you helping me?" Gabriella asked.

"I am helping you because I know you need help" Troy said as he touched Gabriella's hand.

Gabriella flinched and pulled her hand away from Troy's.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have" Troy said as he pulled his hand away.

Gabriella was silent.

"Let's go to the kitchen" Troy said.

Gabriella and Troy walked to the kitchen. Gabriella's eyes grew when she saw Troy's huge kitchen.

"Wow" Gabriella whispered.

Troy smiled.

"My dad and I designed the kitchen" Troy said as he took the pasta out of the grocery bag.

Troy then took a pot out and filled it with water. He then opened the pasta package and put the pasta into the boiling water. Troy then took out a jar of tomato sauce. He poured the sauce into a separate pot and stirred it. A few minutes later, Troy took the boiling pasta and put it into a strainer. He then scooped a fair amount onto two plates and put the hot tomato sauce on top. Troy opened a drawer and picked out two forks and walked to the dining room table. Gabriella followed him. Troy set the two plates down and sat down. Gabriella sat down where the second plate of food was. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"I hope you like spaghetti" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The two adults started eating.

"So Gabriella, tell me about yourself" Troy said.

Gabriella looked up from her food.

"What?" Gabriella asked.

"What do you do?" Troy asked.

"I don't do anything" Gabriella said.

"Do you have any family that can help you?" Troy asked.

"My parents died when I was very young. I have no place to go" Gabriella said.

Troy looked down and sighed.

"I'm so sorry" Troy said.

Gabriella shrugged.

"How long have you been living on the streets for?" Troy asked carefully.

"Since I was sixteen" Gabriella said.

"Nobody has tried to help you?" Troy asked.

"No, all anybody wants from me is sex" Gabriella said.

Troy's heart sank. He had realized that the woman that was sitting in front of him had been sexually abused. When Troy finally collected his thoughts, he looked at Gabriella.

"I don't want that from you, Gabriella" Troy said.

Gabriella giggled sarcastically.

"That's what all the men that have raped me have said" Gabriella said as she got up.

Troy got up and followed Gabriella to the front door.

"Gabriella. I don't want that from you. I think it's sick what men have done to you and I am sorry that you have had to go through that" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Stay here tonight. Tomorrow we will figure out what you will do okay? Maybe I can get you some help" Troy said.

"Why would you help me?" Gabriella asked.

"I want you to be happy and not have to deal with this kind of thing. You deserve better than that" Troy said.

"You don't even know me" Gabriella said.

Troy motioned to the couch in the living room. Gabriella walked over to the couch and sat down. Troy sat on the couch that was across from it.

"I may not know what you have gone through Gabriella, but I want to help you get through this problem you are in" Troy said.

Gabriella thought for a minute. She then looked at Troy and nodded. Troy smiled.

"First of all, you need some help with that cut on your neck. I have some rubbing alcohol in the cabinet and I will clean it up" Troy said.

"No! I-I mean I will clean it myself. Thank you" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"I will go get the rubbing alcohol and a cotton swab" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy got up to get the antiseptic and cotton swabs. He came back two minutes later and gave it to Gabriella. Troy watched Gabriella clean her wounded neck. After she was done, Gabriella threw the cotton swab away and handed the bottle of rubbing alcohol to Troy.

"There are some pajamas in the guest room. Feel free to use them" Troy said.

"Thanks" Gabriella said as she walked to the guest room.

Troy smiled.

"Good night, let me know if you need anything" Troy said.

"I will" Gabriella said as she closed the door.

Troy sighed and walked upstairs and got into bed and fell asleep. Downstairs, Gabriella opened a clothes drawer and saw the pajamas that Troy was talking about. She took off her clothes and changed into the clean pajamas. Gabriella walked over to the bed and put her hand on the sheet. She smiled when she felt it's warm and inviting texture. Gabriella got into bed and closed her eyes. She hadn't been in a bed by herself in a long time. Sleep started to take over Gabriella and her eyes closed. The next morning, Gabriella opened her eyes and remembered that she was at Troy's house. She got up and left the room. Gabriella walked downstairs and smiled when she saw Troy in the kitchen. Troy looked up and smiled.

"Good morning. How did you sleep?" Troy asked.

"Good morning. I slept fine. How did you sleep?" Gabriella asked.

"Fine. Hey listen, I made an appointment for you to see one of my friend's who is a doctor. Maybe she can check you out" Troy said.

"Troy, that's really nice of you but I can't" Gabriella said.

"Gabriella, please go and see this doctor. Maybe she can help you" Troy said.

Gabriella thought for a minute and then nodded.

"Okay" Gabriella whispered.

"Alright. The appointment is at eleven" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella ate breakfast and then left to go to the doctor. Troy drove to the doctor's office and parked his car. Gabriella looked at Troy nervously.

"She's just going to make sure your okay, Gabriella. Her name is Dr. McKessie. She is one of my best friends" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella got out of the car and walked into the office. Troy signed Gabriella in and sat next to her. A few minutes later, a nurse came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Gabriella and Troy got up and followed the nurse. The nurse took Gabriella's height and weight and escorted Troy and Gabriella to an exam room.

"Gabriella, please change into this gown and take your underwear and bra off and Dr. McKessie will be in shortly" the nurse said.

Gabriella nodded. The nurse left and Troy looked at Gabriella.

"I am going to wait outside the room so you can change. Open the door when you are done, okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy left the room. Gabriella sighed and changed into the gown. She then opened the door and Troy walked back into the room. Gabriella sat on the exam table and looked at the door.

"She is going to ask you a couple questions and check you out" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. There was a knock on the door and Dr. McKessie came into the room and smiled.

"Hi Troy, how's everything? Who is this?" Dr. McKessie asked.

"Hi Tay, I'm fine. This is Gabriella. I found her at the market. She is homeless and I wanted to get her checked out to make sure she is okay" Troy said.

Dr. McKessie nodded.

"Hi Gabriella" Dr. McKessie said.

"Hi Dr. McKessie" Gabriella said softly.

"Please call me Taylor. Any friend of Troy's is a friend of mine" Taylor said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I want to make sure that you are alright okay? Will you let me?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella nodded nervously. Troy smiled slightly.

"I am going to go to the waiting room" Troy said.

"No Troy, don't leave me" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and saw tears in her eyes.

"Gabriella, you are in good hands. I promise. Taylor won't hurt you" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"If you need me, I will be right outside okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy smiled and left the room. Taylor looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Gabriella, if you don't mind me asking, have you been sexually active in the last couple of weeks?" Taylor asked carefully.

Gabriella nodded tearfully.

"I was raped" Gabriella cried.

Taylor's heart sank. This young woman was scared to be around anyone. She was kind and polite. Taylor wondered why anyone would want to hurt her.

"I need to check you out, is that okay?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright" Taylor said.

Taylor had tested Gabriella for everything she could think of including STDs, pregnancy and bacterial diseases and they all came up negative.

"Gabriella, all the tests I took were negative. You are completely clean and safe. You are lucky to have found Troy" Taylor said.

Gabriella smiled.

"He is lucky to have found me" Gabriella said.

Taylor smiled.

"I am going to talk to Troy and see what we can do to help you okay? But if you need anything, give me a call" Taylor said as she handed Gabriella her card.

"Thank you" Gabriella said simply.

"You are very welcome" Taylor said.

Gabriella and Taylor walked out of the exam room. Taylor walked Gabriella out to the waiting room.

"Troy, can I have a word?" Taylor asked.

Troy walked over to Taylor and the two friends walked to Taylor's office. Taylor closed the door and sat down at her desk.

"What did you find?" Troy asked.

"She's clean. There were no STDs found and she's not pregnant. But she did tell me something personal" Taylor said.

"What did she tell you?" Troy asked.

"She's been raped. I don't know how many times, but you are very lucky to have found her Troy" Taylor said.

"She mentioned that. I didn't want her to be left in the street, Tay. Gabriella's a sweet girl and she doesn't deserve that treatment from any man" Troy said.

"I know. But I am letting you know right now that Gabriella is very sensitive. Men are a sensitive topic for her and you need to be careful of what you do. She will start to trust you over time, but for right now, just be careful with her" Taylor said.

"When you say sensitive, what do you mean by that?" Troy asked.

"Don't touch her and catch her off guard. It might set her back. That's what I mean. Be careful, Troy. She's scared to death" Taylor said.

Troy nodded.

"I will be careful. Thanks, Tay" Troy said.

Taylor smiled. Troy left Taylor's office and walked to the waiting room. He saw Gabriella and smiled. Troy walked over to Gabriella.

"Are you ready to go back home?" Troy asked.

"Home?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, my house is now your home" Troy said.

Gabriella's eyes widened.

"Yes" Gabriella said quietly.

Troy and Gabriella left the office and got into the car. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Taylor said you were healthy. You didn't have any problems" Troy said.

"That's good" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. Gabriella and Troy got out of the car and walked into the house.

"Gabriella, do you want to take a shower?" Troy asked.

Gabriella's eyes widened when she heard that. She started stepping away from Troy. Troy realized what he said and put his hand on his mouth.

"I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I meant there is a shower down the hall. Do you want to use it?" Troy asked.

Gabriella giggled. Troy smiled.

"I'm really not good at this" Troy said.

"No, you are fine. I guess how you said it the first time was a little weird. But, I can use your shower?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. Troy opened a cabinet and handed Gabriella a towel.

"The bathroom is down the hall" Troy said.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked down the hall to the bathroom and closed and locked the door behind her. She undressed and turned on the shower. Once the water was warm, she got into the shower and smiled when the water hit her skin. Gabriella washed her hair and body. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella got out of the shower and got dressed. She came out of the bathroom and felt human. Gabriella walked downstairs and found Troy sitting in the living room. Troy looked up when he heard footsteps.

"Hey, how was your shower?" Troy asked.

"Great. Thank you for letting me use it" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"No problem. Hey, I was going to have some friends come over tomorrow. They would love to meet you. Are you okay with that?" Troy asked.

"Are they male?" Gabriella asked.

"Yes, nobody will hurt you, Gabriella. I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella swallowed hard.

"You will be safe" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy smiled.

"Okay" Troy said.

The rest of the day, Troy tried to make Gabriella feel comfortable in his home. He hoped that Gabriella would learn to trust him and realize he's not a bad guy.


	2. Opening Up

The next day Gabriella woke up and smiled. She got up and walked downstairs and found Troy sitting in the kitchen. Troy turned on the coffee maker and turned around and smiled when he saw Gabriella.

"Hey, how did you sleep?" Troy asked.

"Fine, Troy can I talk to you about something?" Gabriella asked.

Troy sat down at the kitchen table and offered Gabriella a chair. Gabriella sat down and looked at Troy.

"What's up?" Troy asked.

"Will I ever be able to trust anybody again?" Gabriella asked as tears ran down her face.

Troy sighed and looked at Gabriella.

"Gabriella, you have gone through a lot and you need time to heal from everything. I think that you will be able to trust people when you feel better about yourself. Do you understand what I am saying?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy got up and walked to the kitchen cabinet and pulled out a tissue box and handed it to Gabriella.

"I'm sorry for breaking down like this and putting all of this on you. I mean I barely know you" Gabriella said.

"Hey, it's okay. You are a very kind and sweet woman Gabriella. Once you start feeling better, people will start to see that you are okay" Troy said.

"I hope so" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Is there anything else you want to talk about?" Troy asked.

"I don't want to feel like this anymore" Gabriella said as she started to cry.

Troy carefully put his hand on Gabriella's shoulder and felt her jump. Gabriella looked up.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have touched you" Troy said.

"It's okay" Gabriella cried.

"Gabriella, what are you feeling? If you don't mind me asking" Troy asked.

"I have been raped and sexually abused almost half of my life. I don't want to be a victim of something like this for the rest of my life, Troy. I feel disgusting and ashamed of everything I have done and been through" Gabriella cried.

"Gabriella, I know that you don't want to feel like this for the rest of your life. I don't want you to either. I know that you have gone through a lot. Everything is going to get better, I promise you" Troy said.

Gabriella just cried.

"How do you know everything will get better?" Gabriella asked softly.

"Well for one thing, you are not on the street. That's one thing that has gotten better right?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I am going to try and help you okay? Do you trust me?" Troy asked.

"It's going to take a little time to get used to but, I think I do" Gabriella said.

"I don't want to hurt you, Gabriella. If for any reason you feel uncomfortable, let me know okay?" Troy said.

"I will, thanks Troy" Gabriella said.

"Now, my friends are going to come over. If you feel uncomfortable, just let me know okay?" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

An hour later, the doorbell rang. Troy walked over to the front door and opened.

"Hey man" Chad said.

"Hey Chad, this is my friend Gabriella" Troy said.

"Hi Gabriella, I'm Chad" Chad said as he held his hand out.

Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy got the message loud and clear. He took Chad's hand.

"Are you new to the neighborhood?" Chad asked as he looked down at his hand that Troy was holding.

"Yeah" Gabriella said softly.

Troy smiled at Gabriella.

"She's a little shy, Chad. She's not loud like you. Come on, help me with the steaks before everyone else comes" Troy said.

Troy and Chad walked into the kitchen. Troy took the steaks out of the refrigerator.

"So are you and Gabriella dating?" Chad asked.

"No Chad. She's just a friend. I'm not like you who is in love with every girl I meet" Troy said.

"Ouch, Troy. That hurts" Chad said as he touched his heart.

"Just to give you a heads up, be careful with Gabriella okay? She's been through a lot and doesn't really trust guys" Troy said.

"She trusts you" Chad said.

"Yeah, but that's different Chad" Troy said.

"Alright, don't worry. I won't do anything" Chad said.

"I'm serious man" Troy said.

"Troy, chill. I got it" Chad said.

The doorbell rang and Troy left the kitchen and walked to the front door and opened it. Troy's friends Zeke and Jason stood there and smiled.

"Hey man" Zeke said.

"Hey, come on in. Gabriella, I want you to meet my friends Zeke and Jason" Troy said.

"Hi Gabriella" Zeke and Jason said as they hugged Gabriella.

Gabriella's heart started racing when Zeke and Jason hugged her. The men pulled away and Gabriella ran to the guest room and closed and locked the door. She sighed and tears ran down her cheeks. Gabriella wanted to meet Troy's friends but the things that she has gone through make it hard for her to even meet someone. Meanwhile, the boys were downstairs talking.

"Troy, what's wrong with Gabriella? I didn't mean to offend her" Zeke said.

"It's not your fault, Zeke. It's just that Gabriella is really sensitive right now. I will go check on her" Troy said as he left the room.

Troy walked to the guest room and knocked on the door.

"Gabriella? It's Troy, are you okay?" Troy asked.

"Are you alone?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, can I come in?" Troy asked.

Gabriella opened the door a little bit and stuck her head out.

"Hey, let's talk for a minute okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella let Troy in and closed the door.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I just got a little freaked out. That's all" Gabriella said.

"I'm sorry about Zeke and Jason" Troy said.

"It's not your fault" Gabriella said.

"Do you still trust me?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy smiled.

"Do you want to try it again?" Troy asked.

"If I feel weird, can I come back here?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, if that is what makes you feel better" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright, let's try this again" Troy said as he opened the door.

Troy and Gabriella walked out of the guest room and walked back to the kitchen. Zeke and Jason walked over to Gabriella.

"We're really sorry, Gabriella. We didn't mean to upset you" Zeke said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Thanks guys. I am just a little sensitive around men" Gabriella said.

"Hey, that's okay. We didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable" Zeke said.

"Alright, let's forget about this and put it behind us. Let's start grilling" Troy said as he picked up the steaks.

The three men and Gabriella walked to the backyard. Gabriella sat at a table and watched the boys grill the steaks.

"Gabriella, where are you from?" Zeke asked.

"I'm from New York but I have been living in Rochester for about nine years" Gabriella said.

"Oh that's cool. So how's living with Troy?" Jason asked.

Gabriella smiled at Troy.

"It's been interesting. I have only known him for twenty-four hours but he is very caring and sweet" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Troy's always been like that. Since we were kids, He cares about his friends and his family" Zeke said.

"That's good to know" Gabriella said.

"I think these steaks are ready" Troy said as he got a plate and started putting the meat onto it.

Troy walked into the house and went into the dining room and put the plate of steaks on the table. Chad, Zeke, Jason, and Gabriella followed him and sat down at the table. The plate of steaks was passed around and everyone started eating.

"So Gabriella, do you have a boyfriend?" Chad asked.

Gabriella looked nervously at Troy. Troy smiled.

"Chad, why must you ask personal questions to people you barely know?" Troy asked.

"Sorry man, it was a practical question. But, I'm sorry Gabriella if I got a little too personal. I tend to do that sometimes" Chad said.

"More like, all the time" Jason said.

The men laughed. Gabriella finished swallowing a piece of her steak.

"To answer your question, I don't have a boyfriend. My last boyfriend-" Gabriella stopped and looked at the table.

All the memories regarding Gabriella and her ex-boyfriend's relationship started flooding back into her head.

_Flashback _

_"Get on the bed, Gabriella" James, Gabriella's boyfriend spat. _

_Gabriella looked at her boyfriend and stood in the same place. James pushed Gabriella onto the bed and held a gun to her head. James pulled Gabriella's jeans and underwear down and slowly and roughly started to have sex with her. Tears ran down Gabriella's face as she watched her boyfriend rape her. _

_End of Flashback _

Gabriella had tears running down her face. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Gabriella, are you okay?" Troy asked.

Gabriella was pulled out her thoughts and looked at Troy.

"Um, I think I am going to take a nap. I am really tired. Thanks for the steaks, Troy" Gabriella said as she left the room and walked to the guest room.

"Sure. Let me know if you need anything" Troy said.

Gabriella walked into the guest room and lied down on the bed. She was starting to have flashbacks of when she was abused by her ex-boyfriend and the other men that had abused her after that. Gabriella fell asleep and tried to get the dark memories out of her head. Two hours later, Gabriella woke up and heard knocking on the door. She got out of bed and walked over to the door.

"Who is it?" Gabriella asked.

"It's Troy" Troy said.

Gabriella opened the door.

"Are you okay? What happened earlier?" Troy asked.

"I am okay now. When Chad asked me if I had a boyfriend, a lot of memories just filled my head. The last boyfriend I had did a lot of things to me, Troy" Gabriella said as she started to cry.

Troy's face softened. He put his hand carefully on top of Gabriella's. Gabriella looked up and carefully leaned against Troy's chest. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's back.

"It's okay, Gabriella. You are safe now" Troy said.

"I'm sorry if I gave your friends the wrong impression of me" Gabriella said.

"Hey, they don't matter right now. What matters is that you are okay. You know, talking about problems that I have faced are easier to get through when I have someone that is there to listen to me. Maybe you should just let everything about your past with your ex-boyfriend out so you don't feel like this anymore" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy and tensed. She stepped away from Troy.

"Sorry, I just kind of got uncomfortable standing so close to you" Gabriella said.

"It's okay, but do you see what I am saying? Maybe it's time for you to let everything out" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She opened the door and walked out of the room. Troy followed her to the living room. Gabriella sat down on the couch and looked at Troy. Troy sat next to Gabriella and looked at her.

"When I was sixteen, both of my parents were killed. I don't have any family. Since then I have been living on the streets of New York City. I was walking down the street one night and a man grabbed me. He threw me against a wall and took advantage of me. That was when I was sixteen. Months and years went by and men were still taking advantage of me. I didn't have any money. I only had something a man wanted" Gabriella started.

Troy looked at Gabriella and felt his body tense up. He nodded, letting her know to continue.

"When I first started living on the streets, I didn't know what I would get into. But, I would always ask myself, why do men want to take a young girl's innocence away? I had already lost my family. I didn't need to have one more thing taken from me. As I got older, I would go into markets with women and I would hide food under my shirt and walk out with them. I would run when the alarm would go off, that signaled something had been stolen. I didn't do it to get into trouble. I did it because that's the only way I would survive" Gabriella said as she broke down.

Troy felt his body relax again. He put his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"When I was in the market the day we met, I was going to do the same thing. Only this time, I was too slow. When the cashier stopped me and you looked at me, I knew I was going to end up dead" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed and looked at Gabriella.

"But you didn't" Troy said.

"No, thanks to you" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"I'm so sorry that you had to go through all of that, Gabriella" Troy said.

Gabriella shrugged.

"I did it because I needed to survive" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"So, what's your story?" Gabriella asked.

Troy smiled.

"My story does not even compare to the things that you have gone through" Troy said.

"Hey, we are letting everything out, remember?" Gabriella said reminding him.

Troy smiled and nodded.

"Well, I graduated college with a girlfriend. She and I had been dating for four years. When we moved in together, everything started to become really serious between us. She got pregnant and we were engaged. When she was delivering the baby, something went wrong. She had died during the birth and so did our baby. Ever since then, I kept everything bottled up. I didn't want to date anyone else. I wanted her and only her. When people need help, I want to help them out. When she died, my family sent me to a therapist to talk about her death but I didn't want to talk to someone that didn't understand what I was going through" Troy started.

Gabriella nodded.

"I became a really angry person when I was in therapy. I felt like nobody really understood what I went through and what it felt like to lose their fiancée and their child" Troy said.

"I'm so sorry, Troy" Gabriella whispered.

Troy nodded and smiled.

"Talking and getting to know you for the last day has given me hope that something good will happen to me. I don't know when or how, but I know it will happen. The same goes for you. I know that when you get your life back on track, you will do great things" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Maybe we can help each other" Gabriella suggested.

Troy smiled.

"You need a hug" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy and had a nervous look in her eye.

"How do you hug? I don't think that I do it correctly" Gabriella asked.

"Well, first of all, do you mind if I touch you to show you how?" Troy asked.

Gabriella shook her head slowly.

"I won't hurt you, I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"First, you wrap your arms around my waist and I will do the same. Then you squeeze the other person close to your body" Troy said.

Gabriella slowly and carefully wrapped her arms around Troy's waist and watched him do the same.

"Alright, now we squeeze" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella squeezed each other close. The two adults laughed. Gabriella smiled.

"Wow, that was fun. I liked that" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Good, do you want to do it again?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

Troy hugged Gabriella. Gabriella felt safe with Troy, which she thought was weird because she didn't trust men. She realized that Troy was not a bad guy and he just wanted to help her. The phone rang and Troy ran to his phone and picked it up.

"Hello?" Troy answered.

"Hi Troy" Lucille, Troy's mother said.

"Hi mom, what's up?" Troy asked.

"Your dad and I wanted to invite you over for dinner. Are you free?" Lucille asked.

"Yeah, can I bring my friend?" Troy asked.

"Sure" Lucille said.

"Thanks, mom. I will see you later" Troy said.

Troy hung up the phone and walked over to Gabriella.

"Gabriella, my mom just called. She invited us over for dinner" Troy said.

"Us? Troy, I really can't. That's a family thing and I am not family" Gabriella said.

"Gabriella, listen to me okay? My mom wants to meet you and she said that it was okay if you had dinner with us. Please have dinner with my family and I" Troy said.

Gabriella was silent. She then looked at Troy.

"Alright, I will go. I don't have anything to wear though" Gabriella said.

"I have some of jeans that Taylor left over here. You can wear those and I will get you a shirt" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Everything will be fine. I promise. Like I said before, if you feel uncomfortable, let me know" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella got ready to go. Troy walked over to the guest room and saw Gabriella brushing her hair.

"You ready to go?" Troy asked as he poked his head into the room.

"Yeah" Gabriella said nervously.

"Don't be nervous, Gabriella. My parents are really nice and they won't hurt you" Troy said as they walked out of the house.

Troy and Gabriella got into the car. Troy started driving to his parents house.

"What if your parents hate me, Troy?" Gabriella asked.

"They won't hate you. That is something I am sure of" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy pulled into his parents driveway and turned his car off. He looked at her.

"Hey" Troy said softly.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"If you feel uncomfortable for any reason, let me know and I will take care of it okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella got out of the car. The two adults walked to the front door. Troy took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. A few moments later, Lucille Bolton opened the door. Lucille smiled at the two adults. She hugged and kissed Troy.

"Mom, this is my friend Gabriella. Gabriella, this is my mom Lucille" Troy said.

Lucille put her hand out and Gabriella shakily took it and shook the woman's hand. Troy smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Gabriella" Lucille said.

"Nice to meet you too, Mrs. Bolton" Gabriella said quietly.

Troy smiled. The three adults walked into the house.

"What can I get you guys to drink?"Lucille asked.

"Water for me. Gabriella, what would you like to drink?" Troy asked softly.

"Water please" Gabriella said.

Lucille smiled.

"I will be right back" Lucille said.

"I will come help you, mom. Gabriella, I will be right back" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and watched Troy walk into the kitchen. Troy closed the kitchen door behind him.

"How did you meet Gabriella?" Lucille asked.

"I found her in the city when I was at the market. She was homeless and needed help. I took her home and slowly she is allowing me to help her" Troy said.

Lucille nodded and smiled.

"You are a good man, Troy. Just be careful" Lucille said.

"I will. Just to give you a heads up, please do not talk about any men or romance with her. She's sensitive" Troy said.

"I won't" Lucille said as she kissed Troy's cheek.

Lucille and Troy brought three glasses of water into the living room and set them on the table.

"Here is your water, honey" Lucille said as she handed Gabriella the glass.

"Thank you Mrs. Bolton" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Gabriella, please call me Lucille. Hearing Mrs. Bolton makes me feel old" Lucille said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Sorry Lucille. It's a habit" Gabriella said.

The three adults heard the door open and Jack Bolton, Troy's father walked into the living room.

"Hi guys" Jack said.

Troy felt Gabriella squeeze his arm tightly. Troy looked at Gabriella and saw a frightened look on her face.

"Gabriella, it's okay. Everything is fine. It's just my dad. He's harmless" Troy said.

Gabriella did not release her grip from Troy's arm.

"Jack honey, please go into the kitchen for a minute okay?" Lucille said.

"Alright" Jack said as he walked into the kitchen.

Troy looked at Gabriella. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy and buried her face in Troy's neck.

"Hey, it's alright. He won't hurt you, Gabriella. I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"He won't?" Gabriella asked.

"No" Troy said.

"Gabriella, he won't hurt you" Lucille said.

Gabriella nodded. Jack came back into the room.

"Jack, this is Gabriella. Gabriella is Troy's friend" Lucille said.

Jack held out his hand to Gabriella. Gabriella looked at Jack's hand nervously.

"Dad, she's not going to shake your hand" Troy said.

"I'm sorry if I scared you Gabriella" Jack said.

"It's okay" Gabriella mumbled.

The Bolton's and Gabriella ate dinner. Occasionally, Gabriella would wrap her arm around Troy's arm. Troy knew that Gabriella was going to get better with time, but as for right now, he was the only person Gabriella trusted.


	3. I Will Protect You

That night, Troy and Gabriella left the Bolton home. Troy drove to his house and parked his car in the driveway. He looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"You okay?" Troy asked.

"I went back to a bad place. I'm sorry if I gave your parents a bad impression of me" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and took her hand in his.

"Gabriella, you didn't give my parents a bad impression. You have gone through a lot. They understand" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy got out of the car and walked to Gabriella's side. He opened the door and opened his arms. Gabriella smiled and took off her seatbelt and got out of the car. She walked into Troy's arms and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"See, you are safe. Come on, let's go inside" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella pulled away and walked to the front door. Troy and Gabriella walked into the house.

"Troy?" Gabriella called.

Troy turned around and looked at Gabriella.

"Thank you for everything. I haven't gotten a chance to thank you for everything you have done for me" Gabriella said.

Gabriella broke down. Troy walked over to Gabriella and wrapped his arms around the fragile woman.

"Hey, hey don't cry Gabriella. You don't need to thank me" Troy said.

"I do need to. I mean who picks a homeless girl who has been sexually abused off the street and allows them to live in their home with them?" Gabriella cried.

"You deserve better. You are a young, bright, and smart woman. Nobody deserves to go through what you have been through" Troy said.

Gabriella sniffled and looked at Troy.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"You are welcome. You better get some sleep okay? You have had a long day" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Gabriella and Troy went their separate ways and got into bed and fell asleep. A couple hours later, Gabriella was tossing and turning in her bed. She was having a nightmare.

_Flashback _

_Gabriella was thrown against the wall by a dark figure. He held a knife to her throat. _

"_If you move, I will kill you" the man said. _

_Gabriella cried as the man pointed the knife into her skin. _

"_Be quiet" the man spat. _

_The man took advantage of Gabriella and left her on the ground in the middle of an alley. Gabriella crawled into a ball and cried. _

_End of Flashback. _

Gabriella woke up and screamed. She opened her eyes and tried to regain her breath. Troy ran downstairs when he heard Gabriella scream. He opened the guest room door and looked at Gabriella.

"What happened?" Troy asked.

"Bad dream" Gabriella said as she took a deep breath.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Troy asked.

"I had a dream about getting raped. A man held a knife to my neck and threatened to kill me if I moved" Gabriella cried.

Troy sat on the edge of Gabriella's bed carefully. He put his hand on Gabriella's back and felt her tense up.

"Gabriella, you are safe now. Nobody can hurt you anymore" Troy said.

"I'm sorry for waking you up" Gabriella said.

"Hey, it's alright. Tomorrow I am going to take you to see Taylor. She wants you to check out again" Troy said.

"Don't leave me, Troy" Gabriella said as tears ran down her face.

"Hey, come here" Troy said.

Gabriella moved closer to Troy. Troy opened his arms and Gabriella moved into them.

"Everything is okay, Gabriella. Once you get through this, you won't have nightmares anymore" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy got off Gabriella's bed.

"Troy?" Gabriella called.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Yeah?" Troy asked.

"Stay here tonight" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I will go get my pillow and blanket" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

Troy left the room and walked upstairs. He picked up his pillow and blanket and walked downstairs to the guest room. Troy walked into the guest room and put his pillow and blanket on the floor.

"Alright, do you feel a little better?" Troy asked.

"Yes, thank you" Gabriella said.

"Good night" Troy said as he pulled his blanket over him.

Gabriella and Troy fell asleep. The next morning, Troy woke up and smiled when he saw Gabriella sleeping. He walked out of the guest room quietly and walked upstairs and put his blanket and pillow on his bed. Troy then walked downstairs and saw Gabriella walking out of the guest room.

"Hey, how did you sleep?" Troy asked.

"Fine. How did you sleep?" Gabriella asked.

"Fine, your appointment is in an hour" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked into the guest room and changed her clothes. She then walked into the kitchen and looked at Troy.

"What is Taylor going to do?" Gabriella asked.

"She is just going to check you out and make sure everything is okay" Troy explained.

Gabriella looked at Troy nervously.

"Stay with me?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course I will stay with you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and hugged Troy. Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella.

"We should get going" Troy said as he looked at the clock.

Gabriella nodded. The two adults left the house and got into the car. Troy drove to Taylor's office and parked his car. Gabriella and Troy got out of the car and walked into the office. Troy signed Gabriella in and sat down next to her. A couple minutes later, a nurse came into the room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Gabriella and Troy stood up and walked over to the nurse. The two adults walked into a little room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. They were then escorted to an exam room.

"Please change into this gown and Dr. McKessie will be in shortly" the nurse said.

The nurse left the room.

"I am going to step out so you can change okay? I will be right outside the door. Just open it when you are done and I will come back in" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy left the room and Gabriella changed into the gown. She opened the door a little bit and Troy blocked the door so no one would see Gabriella and walked into the room and closed the door.

"Are you nervous?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Gabriella, she just wants to make sure nothing is wrong. If there is something wrong, then we have to fix it" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

There was a knock on the door and Taylor walked into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys. Gabriella, I wanted to call you back in and just check you again. Is that okay?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella nodded slowly.

"It's okay" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's hand.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Now, Gabriella can you lie back for me?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella lied down on the bed. She started breathing heavy. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's shoulder.

"Gabriella, just look at me okay? Everything is okay" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy and nodded. Taylor washed her hands and put a pair of gloves on. She then sat on a stool.

"Alright Gabriella, I am going to separate your legs okay?" Taylor said.

Gabriella nodded slightly. Taylor separated Gabriella's legs. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Gabriella, I am going to just take your underwear off" Taylor said.

Gabriella was breathing heavily and sweating.

"No!" Gabriella screamed.

Taylor and Troy looked at each other and then at Gabriella.

"Taylor, can I have a minute alone with Gabriella?" Troy asked.

"Of course" Taylor said.

Taylor walked out of the room. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked softly.

"I didn't mean to yell, Troy. I just saw the memories and I got scared" Gabriella said as tears ran down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey I know. Taylor needs to check you out okay? Will you let her?" Troy asked as he wiped Gabriella's tears away.

Gabriella nodded slightly.

"Do you want to take your underwear off so she can check and not touch anything?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright" Troy said.

Gabriella took her underwear off.

"I am going to go get Taylor okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy walked out of the room and came back with Taylor. Taylor smiled at Gabriella.

"Gabriella, if you feel uncomfortable, let me know okay?" Taylor said.

Gabriella nodded. Taylor sat down in her original place and repositioned Gabriella.

"Alright Gabriella, you will feel a little pressure okay?" Taylor said.

Gabriella grabbed Troy's hand. Taylor examined Gabriella and came up and looked at Gabriella. Troy rubbed her hand soothingly.

"She has many wounds that haven't healed yet" Taylor said.

"What do we need to do?" Troy asked.

"There is nothing we can do. These men hurt Gabriella. She needs some time to heal" Taylor said.

Gabriella had tears in her eyes. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Everything is okay, Gabriella. Don't worry" Troy said.

Gabriella started to cry. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's shoulder.

"Hey, look at me Gabriella" Troy said softly.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"We want to help you. If we didn't find out about these cuts, then we wouldn't be able to help you" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Gabriella, Troy will take good care of you" Taylor said.

"I know" Gabriella said softly.

"Alright, I will see you guys later" Taylor said.

"Thanks Tay" Troy said.

"No problem" Taylor said.

Taylor left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"It hurts" Gabriella said.

Troy put his hand on top of Gabriella's carefully.

"I know it does, Gabriella. Once the cuts have healed, you won't be in any pain" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Let's go back to the house okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella left the doctor's office. Troy drove home and parked his car. The two adults got out of the car and walked into the house.

"Gabriella, why don't you take a nap?" Troy suggested.

"I think I will" Gabriella said.

"Alright, let me know if you need anything" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked to the guest room and got into bed and fell asleep. A couple hours later, Gabriella woke up to voices. She didn't see anyone in her room but still heard the voices. Gabriella started breathing rapidly.

"Troy?" Gabriella cried.

Troy ran when Gabriella heard her cry. He walked into the room and looked at Gabriella.

"What's wrong?" Troy asked.

"Flashbacks" Gabriella said simply.

Troy opened his arms and Gabriella walked into them. He rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay. Everything is okay" Troy said.

"When will this stop?" Gabriella cried.

"I don't know Gabriella. I really don't. Would you like to help me make dinner? It may get your mind off of everything" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright, come on" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella walked out of the guest room and walked into the kitchen.

"What do you feel like eating?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. What about some meat and potatoes?" Gabriella suggested.

"Alright, that sounds good to me" Troy said as he took meat and potatoes out of the refrigerator.

Troy and Gabriella started chopping the meat and potatoes. They then put the meat into a pan and the potatoes in another. The doorbell rang and Gabriella looked at Troy.

"I will get the door. Can you watch the meat please?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

Troy walked to the front door and opened it. He smiled when he saw Chad.

"Hey man" Troy said as he shook Chad's hand.

"Hey, how's everything?" Chad asked.

"Everything is good. Gabriella is here" Troy said.

"Oh, how's everything with her going?" Chad asked.

"Fine, she trusts me Chad. She doesn't trust anyone else" Troy said.

Gabriella walked into the living room and leaned against the wall. Her body stiffened when she saw Chad.

"Hi Gabriella" Chad said.

"Hi" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and saw that she was scared of Chad. He looked at Chad.

"We were about to eat, I will call you tomorrow man" Troy said.

"Alright, bye Gabriella" Chad said.

"Bye" Gabriella said softly.

Chad walked out of the house. Troy closed the door.

"You okay?" Troy asked.

"I don't want you to push your friends away just because I have an issue with men, Troy" Gabriella said.

"I'm not. I want you to feel comfortable when you are here. It's your home too" Troy said.

"No it's not. Troy, you should let your friends come over" Gabriella said.

"Gabriella, it's your home too. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable, that's all" Troy said.

"Ugh" Gabriella moaned as she left the room and went into the guest room and closed the door.

Troy sighed. He didn't know if he should talk to Gabriella about everything or just leave it for now. Troy decided that he would give Gabriella her space. He finished making dinner and put the meat and potatoes on two plates. Troy sighed and walked out of the kitchen and went to the guest room. He knocked on the door politely.

"Gabriella, dinner is ready" Troy said.

Gabriella opened the door a little bit and looked at Troy.

"I'm sorry" Troy said.

"I'm sorry too" Gabriella said.

"Come here" Troy said as he opened his arms.

Gabriella walked into Troy's open arms. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"I understand what you are saying, Gabriella. I was just saying that you live here too and if you feel uncomfortable with something, then one of us will have to sacrifice something. That's what living together is all about" Troy said.

"I haven't lived with someone in a long time, Troy" Gabriella said.

"I know and that's okay. Can we just pretend that this didn't happen?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright, dinner is ready" Troy said.

Gabriella and Troy walked to the dining room and sat down. The two adults started eating.

"Taylor called me earlier and asked me how you were doing" Troy said.

"Oh" Gabriella said.

"You haven't really said anything to me about how you are doing" Troy said.

"I'm fine" Gabriella said.

"My mom said that she wanted to drop by and see us. Are you okay with that?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, that's fine" Gabriella said as she finished her food.

"Alright" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella put their plates in the dishwasher. The two adults heard the doorbell ring and walked into the living room. Troy opened the front door and smiled when he saw his mother.

"Hi mom" Troy said.

"Hi honey. Hi Gabriella" Lucille said.

"Hi Mrs. Bolton" Gabriella said.

Lucille walked over to Gabriella and carefully hugged her.

"How many times am I going to tell you to call me Lucille?" Lucille joked.

Gabriella and Troy smiled.

"Sorry, it's a habit" Gabriella said.

"What's going on mom?" Troy asked.

"Well, I was going to go get my hair done but I wanted to stop by and see if Gabriella wanted to go with me" Lucille said.

"Oh no Mrs. Bolton, I can't" Gabriella said.

"Gabriella honey, no excuses. We need to figure out what to do with that hair of yours" Lucille said.

Gabriella giggled.

"Alright, I will go. But can Troy come with us?" Gabriella asked.

"Sure he can" Lucille said.

Gabriella wrapped her arm around Troy's arm.

"I will go get my shoes" Gabriella said as she walked into the guest room and slipped her shoes on.

Gabriella walked over to Troy.

"Are you ready to go?" Lucille asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella said as she wrapped her arm around Troy's arm.

The Bolton's and Gabriella left the house. Lucille drove to her hair salon and parked her car. The three adults got out of the car and walked into the salon. Lucille signed herself and Gabriella in. The hair dresser brought the two women to the chairs and they sat down. The hair dresser that was working on Gabriella's hair looked at her.

"What are we doing to your hair honey?" the hair dresser asked.

"Um-" Gabriella started.

"Clean it up" Lucille answered.

Gabriella looked at Lucille and then the hair dresser. The hair dresser smiled.

"Alright" the hair dresser said.

The hair dresser worked on Gabriella's hair. Forty-five minutes later, Gabriella looked in the mirror and smiled.

"My hair is back" Gabriella said as she touched her long straight hair.

"Do you like it?" the hair dresser asked.

"I love it" Gabriella said.

Lucille smiled.

"Go see what Troy thinks" Lucille said as she paid.

"Alright, thank again" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked over to the waiting area and saw Troy looking at a magazine.

"So what do you think?" Gabriella asked as she caught Troy off guard.

Troy looked up and his eyes widened. Gabriella looked like a completely different person. Her hair was straight and long and beautiful. Troy stood up and smiled.

"Wow, you look great" Troy said as he smiled.

Gabriella smiled.

"It looks better than the rat nest that was formerly called my hair" Gabriella said.

Troy laughed.

"Hey, you have to give yourself some credit. Only you could pull that off" Troy said.

"What do you think of her hair Troy? Isn't it beautiful?" Lucille asked as she walked over.

"It's beautiful" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Come on, I will drive you guys home" Lucille said.

Troy, Gabriella, and Lucille walked out of the salon and got into the car. Lucille drove Troy and Gabriella home. Troy and Gabriella walked into the house.

"So, that was kind of fun" Troy said.

"Hey, you have to admit, those magazines you were looking at were kind of interesting" Gabriella said.

"Totally" Troy said sarcastically.

Gabriella smiled.

"You are in a good mood today" Troy said.

"I think it's because I haven't been around men. I mean you are a man but-" Gabriella stopped.

"You mean men that you don't feel comfortable around" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"I have a question but you don't have to answer it if you don't want to" Troy said.

"Alright, what is it?" Gabriella asked.

"Do you know what happened to your parents?" Troy asked.

Gabriella was silent. She looked down at the couch.

"My parents were hit by a drunk driver. The police wouldn't tell me anything at first. But then when they finally told me, I felt lost" Gabriella explained.

Troy put his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"I was only sixteen. I had no family. I didn't know what I was supposed to do Troy. Nobody had told me what to do when your parents were suddenly killed" Gabriella said as she started to cry.

"Hey, hey. It's okay" Troy said as he wrapped his arms around Gabriella.

"I miss them" Gabriella said.

"I know you do and I am sorry you had to deal with that" Troy said.

"If they were alive, I wouldn't be homeless and I would have a family" Gabriella said.

"Well, you are part of my family Gabriella" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"What?" Gabriella asked.

"When I met you, I didn't think that we would have things in common. But when I got to know you, I found that you are almost exactly like me and vice versa. I didn't think that I would become close to anybody in only a few days, but I found you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I never thought I would trust anyone but that changed when I met you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Without you, I would be living on the streets" Gabriella said.

"Hey, let's not think about that okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The rest of the day, Gabriella and Troy relaxed around the house. Troy was happy that Gabriella was finally starting to trust him.


	4. Facing Your Fears

A couple weeks later, Gabriella was starting to get the hang of living with Troy. She would help him make dinner and the everyday things that he needed to get done. Gabriella was starting to feel more comfortable around Troy, but there would be some times where her flashbacks and the trauma that she had gone through overtook her. One day, Troy and Gabriella were making dinner. Gabriella was cutting vegetables when all of the sudden, she dropped her knife. Troy looked at Gabriella and was immediately concerned.

"Gabriella, are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I had a flashback" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed.

"The flashbacks are starting to come not as often anymore" Troy said.

"Yeah, but they are still really vivid and freak me out" Gabriella said.

"They will get better over time" Troy said.

"Do you have work tomorrow?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, I only have to go in for a couple hours then I will be home" Troy said.

"Okay, how is the meat coming along?" Gabriella asked as she looked at the meat that Troy was cooking.

"I think it's almost done. Hey, I never asked you, do you have a nickname that you use?" Troy asked.

"My parents called me Gabi" Gabriella said.

"Can I call you that? If you don't want me to, I won't. It was just a thought" Troy said.

"Yeah, you can call me Gabi if you want" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"The vegetables are done" Gabriella said as he put the vegetables on two plates.

"The meat is done too" Troy said as he put the meat onto the plates.

Troy and Gabriella took their plates to the dining room table and sat down. The two adults started eating.

"So my family is having this party tomorrow night. All my friends and family are going to be there. Do you want to go?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked up at Troy.

"I will go if you want me to. I don't want to intrude though. But, what am I going to do if I have a flashback or guys come close to me?" Gabriella asked.

"You are not intruding. If you have a flashback or a guy comes too close to you then you can always come and get me and I will handle it" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"You know all of my friends and my parents. You will be fine, I promise" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella finished eating. They then walked into the living room and watched a movie. The next morning, Gabriella woke up and walked downstairs and found Troy in the kitchen.

"Morning" Gabriella said.

"Good morning" Troy said.

"What time is the party tonight?" Gabriella asked.

"Six. Do you still want to go? You don't have to if you don't feel comfortable" Troy said.

"Yeah I will go. I have to face my fear at some point" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Alright, did you have any flashbacks today?" Troy asked.

"No, but I feel a little uneasy" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Maybe, you just need to relax a little bit. Tonight when we go to my parents, have some fun" Troy said.

"I will try" Gabriella said.

"Good, come on I want to show you something" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy took Gabriella's hand carefully and walked upstairs. Gabriella and Troy walked into a bedroom and stopped. Troy walked deeper into the room. Gabriella leaned against the door frame and watched Troy.

"This was supposed to be my daughter's room" Troy said.

Gabriella's face softened.

"Troy, you don't need to show me this if you don't want to" Gabriella said.

Troy turned around and looked at Gabriella.

"No, you told me that you were going to face your fears by going to a party with my family. The least I could do is face my own. I haven't been in here since before Nicole died" Troy said.

"Was Nicole supposed to be your daughter's name?" Gabriella asked carefully.

"No, it was my fiancée's name. She was everything to me and our baby was a representation of our love for each other" Troy said.

Gabriella slowly walked over to Troy.

"I had everything planned out. Nicole and I thought that our daughter would look like her but have my smile and charm. We didn't want her to go down the same path that we both did. At the time, I didn't think I was going to be a good father. I mean, I was only twenty-one years old and going to be in charge of another human's life other than myself" Troy said.

Gabriella had tears running down her face.

"I'm so sorry, Troy" Gabriella said.

"Things happen for a reason, at least that's what everyone keeps telling me. But, I am still trying to figure out the reason why that God had to take my fiancée and my child at the same time" Troy said.

"Troy, you are a good man. Maybe your life wasn't supposed to go according to the plan" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded. He hugged Gabriella. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy tightly. Troy pulled away and looked at Gabriella.

"I'm sorry for putting all of this on you. It's probably really difficult to understand all of it" Troy said.

"Hey, I understand. Come on, let's go to your parents and forget about everything and just have fun, like you said earlier" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"Your right. Come on, let's get ready and go" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The two adults went their separate ways and got ready to go to the Boltons. After they finished getting ready, Troy and Gabriella left the house and drove to Troy's parents house. Troy parked his car in the driveway and got out of the car. Troy and Gabriella walked to the front door. Troy rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer it. Lucille opened the door and smiled.

"Hi guys" Lucille said as she hugged them.

"Hi mom" Troy said.

"Hi Mrs.-I mean Lucille" Gabriella said.

"Come on in" Lucille said.

Troy and Gabriella walked into the house. Troy went up to Gabriella's ear.

"Remember, if you feel uncomfortable, let me know" Troy whispered.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella walked into the living room where Troy's friends and family were. Taylor walked up to Troy and Gabriella.

"Hi Gabriella" Taylor said.

"Hi Dr. McKessie" Gabriella said.

"Oh please, call me Taylor. I'm not in the office" Taylor said as she hugged Gabriella.

Gabriella looked at Troy and her eyes widened. Troy smiled and looked at Taylor.

"Tay, relax a little bit. She's still a little sensitive" Troy said.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking" Taylor said.

"Taylor it's fine. I have been getting better about that" Gabriella said.

"Good. You have come a long way since I saw you last" Taylor said.

Troy smiled.

"I am going to get a drink, do you want anything?" Troy asked.

"Not right now, thanks" Gabriella said.

Gabriella smiled and Troy smiled back.

"I am going to go find Chad and Jason. Come find me if there is a problem" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Taylor and Gabriella talked for a little while until a tall man approached them and started talking to Taylor. Gabriella felt her heart beating out of her chest. She started to feel very uneasy.

"I will be back Taylor. I am going to go find Troy" Gabriella said.

"Alright honey" Taylor said.

Gabriella walked away as fast she could. She looked around for Troy and didn't see him. Gabriella then walked into the kitchen and found Troy. She walked over to Troy and hugged him from behind. Troy turned around and hugged Gabriella.

"What happened?" Troy asked.

"A guy started talking to Taylor and I felt uncomfortable" Gabriella said.

Troy put his arm around Gabriella, protectively.

"Do you want to leave?" Troy asked.

"No, I need to face my fear" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"You know you don't have to face your fear tonight. There isn't a deadline, Gabi" Troy said.

"I know but the sooner I face my fear of men, the sooner I will be able to be normal" Gabriella said.

"Hey, you are normal" Troy said.

Gabriella raised her eyebrows. Troy laughed.

"I'm not kidding Troy" Gabriella said.

"Gabi, you need to slowly introduce men into your life. You can't just interact with a bunch of men all at once" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"Maybe you are right" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Come on, let's get out of here" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The two adults said goodbye to Troy's parents and left the house. They got into the car and looked at each other.

"Well, that went well" Troy said as he started driving.

"Yeah, I only had one problem" Gabriella said.

Troy looked over at Gabriella.

"You are doing really well, Gabriella" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Thanks, I just want to be able to trust other people. It's hard to avoid certain people" Gabriella said.

"I know you do. Everything will get better" Troy said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and turned his car off. The two adults got out of the car and walked into the house.

"I think I am going to go to bed. I am really tired" Gabriella said.

"Alright. Goodnight, Gabi. Call me if you need anything" Troy said.

"Goodnight" Gabriella said.

Gabriella hugged Troy and walked to the guest room. She then walked in and closed the door. Gabriella walked over to the bed and sat down. She was so happy that she was starting to show a lot of progress in trusting Troy. There was a knock on the door and Gabriella got off the bed and opened it. Troy stood there and smiled.

"What's up?" Gabriella asked.

"I didn't mean to wake you up. But, I need to talk to you for a minute" Troy said.

Gabriella opened the door wider and Troy walked in. Troy sat down at the desk that was in the room.

"Gabi, what I am about to say may freak you out a little bit and I understand if it does okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"What's going on Troy?" Gabriella asked.

Troy sighed and looked at Gabriella.

"I think I am starting to fall for you" Troy said.

Gabriella blinked and just stared at Troy.

"I know that sounds really crazy coming from me. But, I just had to get it off my chest" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Troy, I am starting to fall for you too I think. But, I am scared" Gabriella said.

Troy's face softened.

"Gabriella, I know you are scared. You just admitted that you liked me and you are going through all of this stuff. I promise you that I will never treat you like you have been treated in the past" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She then walked over to Troy and kissed his lips softly. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's waist carefully. He looked at Gabriella and smiled. Gabriella smiled back.

"So what do we do now?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't know. I don't want to push you into anything, Gabi. So the question is what do you want to do?" Troy asked.

"I feel safe with you and I trust you. But I am afraid of getting hurt, Troy" Gabriella said.

"I would never in a million years hurt you, Gabriella" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy leaned in slowly and kissed Gabriella's lips. Gabriella pulled back slowly.

"I want to take everything slow okay? I don't want to rush into having sex" Gabriella said.

"You make the rules. Whatever you feel comfortable with is fine with me" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and wrapped her arms around Troy's neck.

"So what are we?" Gabriella asked.

"Do you want to be my girlfriend, Gabi?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled and nodded. Troy smiled and kissed her lips softly. Gabriella pulled back and looked at Troy.

"Well now that everything is off my chest, I think I can finally go to sleep. How about you?" Troy asked.

"I think I will be able to sleep much better now" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips.

"Alright, goodnight" Troy said.

"Goodnight" Gabriella said.

Gabriella closed the guest room door and smiled. She touched her lips with her hand. Gabriella walked over to her bed and fell asleep. The next morning, Gabriella woke up and got out of bed. She walked out of the guest room and heard Troy singing. Gabriella smiled and walked into the kitchen. She leaned against the door frame and listened to her boyfriend sing.

_You're better then the best  
I'm lucky just to linger in your light  
Cooler then the flip side of my pillow, that's right  
Completely unaware  
Nothing can compare to where you send me,  
Lets me know that it's ok, yeah it's ok  
And the moments where my good times start to fade_

You make me smile like the sun  
Fall out of bed, sing like a bird  
Dizzy in my head, spin like a record  
Crazy on a Sunday night  
You make me dance like a fool  
Forget how to breathe  
Shine like gold, buzz like a bee  
Just the thought of you can drive me wild  
Ohh, you make me smile 

Gabriella smiled when she listened to the song that Troy was singing. She giggled and Troy turned around and smiled.

"Good morning" Troy said as he walked over to Gabriella.

"Good morning" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly and pulled back.

"I liked your singing" Gabriella said.

Troy laughed.

"Thanks, I didn't think it was that good" Troy said.

"What is your plan for the day?" Gabriella asked.

"Well, I was thinking that maybe we could go to my parents and tell them the news. Are you okay with that?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, when do you want to go?" Gabriella asked.

"How about we go in an hour?" Troy suggested.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked to the guest room and changed her clothes. She then walked back into the kitchen. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"You look cute" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips.

"Are you ready to go?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, let's go" Troy said.

The couple walked hand in hand out of the house. They got into the car and drove to the Bolton home. Troy parked his car and looked at Gabriella.

"Do you think your parents will be okay with us being together? I mean, they only know me as the homeless girl that you tried to help out" Gabriella said.

"Gabi, they will be fine with it. They aren't going to judge you because of what you have been through. I promise everything will be fine" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The couple got out of the car and walked to the front door. Troy rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer the door. Lucille opened the door and smiled.

"Hi guys, what's going on?" Lucille asked.

"We have something to tell you, mom" Troy said.

"Okay" Lucille said as they walked into the living room.

Everyone sat down. Troy looked at Gabriella. Gabriella smiled.

"Gabriella and I are dating" Troy said.

Lucille smiled.

"That's great. You guys are perfect together. Gabi, how do you feel about all of this?" Lucille asked.

"I'm happy. When Troy told me that he had feelings for me, I got a little scared because I had the same feelings that he did. But, I trust him and he is the only guy that I trust" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and entwined their fingers together. Lucille smiled.

"I am so happy for the two of you" Lucille said.

"Thanks mom" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella talked to Lucille for a little while longer and left the house. Troy drove home and parked his car. The couple got out of the car and walked into the house.

"What do you want to do today?" Troy asked.

"I don't know" Gabriella said as she leaned her head on Troy's shoulder.

"We could watch a movie if you want" Troy said.

"Okay, let's do that" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella walked into the living room.

"What movies do you have?" Gabriella asked.

"I have different kinds. I have comedies, romance, and some other ones" Troy said.

"Let's watch a comedy" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said as he put a movie into the DVD player.

Gabriella and Troy sat on the couch. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest. Troy put his arm around Gabriella. The couple watched the movie happily. After it finished, Troy looked over at Gabriella and saw that she was sleeping. He smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek. Gabriella opened her eyes slowly and looked at Troy.

"The movie ended. Do you want to go to your room and go to sleep?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded slowly.

"Okay, come on. I will help you" Troy said.

Gabriella got up and walked to the guest room. She changed into her pajamas and got into bed.

"Good night" Troy said.

"Good night" Gabriella said.

Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips. He left the room and walked upstairs and fell asleep. The next day, Gabriella woke up and got out of bed. She walked into the kitchen and didn't see Troy. Gabriella then went to the living room and didn't see Troy there either. She walked upstairs and stuck her head into Troy's room and saw him sleeping. Gabriella walked into the room quietly and lied down next to Troy and snuggled into his chest. Troy put his arm around Gabriella and opened his eyes.

"What are you doing up here?" Troy asked.

"You slept in today" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, I was tired. Good morning" Troy said as he leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips.

Gabriella put her hand on Troy's cheek and kissed him back.

"Good morning" Gabriella said.

"So what's the plan for today?" Troy asked.

"Nothing" Gabriella said.

"Do you want to stay in today? We can just watch movies and hang around the house" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright, I will go bring some movies up here" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said as she snuggled into Troy's bed.

Troy went downstairs to get movies. Gabriella smiled as she thought about how her life had changed in only a couple of weeks. The couple was so happy that they found each other.


	5. A Little Goes A Long Way

Troy picked out some movies and walked upstairs. He walked into his bedroom and smiled when he saw Gabriella snuggled in his bed. Troy walked over to the bed and lied down next to Gabriella and looked at her.

"I thought you wanted to take everything slow" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I do. But snuggling in your boyfriend's bed is not considered anything sexual, right?" Gabriella asked.

Troy raised his eyebrows.

"It infers it a little bit. But I know you like to snuggle so I am not going to say anything about it" Troy said.

"What movies did you bring?" Gabriella asked.

"I brought some comedies and romance movies. I think you will like them" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy put a movie into the DVD player and walked back to his bed and lied down. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's side. The couple watched the movie and stole kisses from each other throughout it. When the movie ended, the doorbell rang. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"I will get it" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy walked downstairs and went to the front door. He opened the door and smiled when he saw Chad and Jason.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Troy asked.

"Nothing, we were just checking on you. We haven't seen you in a while" Chad said.

"I am fine. Everything is fine" Troy said.

"Troy? Who is at the door?" Gabriella asked as she walked down the stairs.

Chad and Jason looked at Troy and then at Gabriella.

"Hi Gabriella" Chad said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Hi Chad" Gabriella said.

"How's everything going?" Chad asked.

"Fine" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and put his arm around Gabriella's shoulder.

"What's going on between the two of you?" Chad asked.

Troy looked at Gabriella. Gabriella looked at Troy and shook her head.

"Nothing is going on" Troy said as he looked at Chad and Jason.

"Well we just wanted to check on you and see how everything was going. Bye Gabriella" Chad said.

"Bye Chad" Gabriella said.

Chad and Jason left the house. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"You did well with Chad. How do you feel?" Troy asked.

"At first, I was kind of scared but then when you walked over to me, I didn't feel scared anymore" Gabriella said.

"Good. I'm proud of you Gabi" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"It's all thanks to you" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's cheek.

Troy smiled and took her hand in his.

"No it's not. You are the one doing the work" Troy said.

"Yeah but you are the one making me feel comfortable around men" Gabriella said.

"I can't argue you with that. Come on, let's go back upstairs" Troy said as he wrapped his arm around Gabriella's shoulders.

The couple walked upstairs and got back into Troy's bed.

"Why didn't you want to tell Chad that we are together?" Troy asked as he looked at Gabriella.

"I want to tell him. But, I want to wait a little bit. If you tell him, it's fine but I am still getting used to talking to other men besides you" Gabriella said.

"Okay. I don't want to tell him until you are comfortable with him" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and snuggled back into Troy's side. Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly. Gabriella pulled back and looked at her boyfriend.

"What's the next movie that is on our movie marathon list?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. You pick" Gabriella said.

"But I just picked" Troy said.

"Remember, I don't know any of these movies Troy" Gabriella said.

"I forgot, sorry. Do you want to watch a romantic comedy?" Troy asked.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy put in a movie and walked back to the bed. The couple started watching the movie. Gabriella leaned over and kissed Troy's cheek softly. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled. He leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips and pulled back slowly, leaving Gabriella's lips lingering. The doorbell rang and Troy sighed.

"Why is that when I want to be alone with my girlfriend, everyone has to ring the doorbell?" Troy asked as he shook his head.

"Do you want me to get the door?" Gabriella asked.

"Okay" Troy said.

Gabriella walked downstairs and went to the front door. She opened it and saw Zeke and Jason standing there.

"Hi Gabriella" Zeke said.

"Hi guys" Gabriella said quietly.

"Is Troy home?" Zeke asked.

"Uh yeah, I will go get him" Gabriella said quietly.

Gabriella walked upstairs and went into Troy's room. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Zeke and Jason are at the door. I am going to stay up here" Gabriella said.

"Are you getting a little freaked out?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy got up and walked over to Gabriella and hugged her close. He kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Everything is okay. I will go deal with them and I will come back up here" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy walked downstairs and went to the living room where Zeke and Jason were sitting.

"What's going on guys?" Troy asked as he shook his friends hands.

"We were going to have a little get together with everyone tonight. Do you want to come?" Zeke asked.

"I have to check with Gabriella" Troy said.

Zeke and Jason looked at each other and sighed. They then looked at Troy.

"Troy, we understand that you and Gabi-" Jason said.

"It's Gabriella, to you. No you don't understand guys. You are my friends and you are supposed to support me in what I want to do right?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Zeke and Jason said.

"Well, I want to spend time with my girlfriend and if she doesn't want to go, then I don't want to go either" Troy said.

"Girlfriend?" Jason and Zeke asked simultaneously.

Troy's eyes widened. He silently cursed himself. Troy looked at his friends.

"That's none of your business" Troy said.

"Okay" Jason and Zeke said.

Gabriella came downstairs and stood on the first step. She looked into the room and saw Troy, Jason, and Zeke talking. Gabriella walked into the room.

"Hey Gabriella" Zeke said.

Troy turned around and smiled. Gabriella looked at the men.

"What's going on?" Gabriella asked.

"Nothing" Troy said.

"I heard you guys yelling from upstairs. What's going on?" Gabriella asked.

"We were just wondering why Troy hasn't been hanging out with us, that's all" Jason said.

Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Guys, Troy hasn't been hanging out with you because we are going out. I didn't want him to tell you guys yet because I don't feel comfortable around any men besides him. Sorry that I am taking your best friend away from you" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked to the guest room and closed the door. Troy looked at Zeke and Jason.

"We're sorry about bugging you man" Zeke said.

"Yeah Troy, we didn't know the reason. I'm sorry" Jason said.

Troy smiled.

"Thanks guys" Troy said.

"We are going to go and let you hang out with Gabriella" Jason said.

"Alright" Troy said.

Jason and Zeke left the house. Troy sighed and walked to the guest room and saw that the door was closed.

"Gabi? Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I'm ruining everything" Gabriella said from inside the guest room.

Troy leaned his head against the door.

"Babe, no you aren't. The guys were just giving me a hard time. Can we talk?" Troy asked.

Gabriella opened the door slowly and looked at Troy.

"I'm sorry that you had to hear all of that" Troy said.

"I didn't mean to cause you any trouble with your friends" Gabriella said.

"Gabriella, you aren't causing me any trouble with Jason and Zeke. They are just used to me being by myself. I want us to work and I don't want this to come between us okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy opened his arms and Gabriella walked into them. He kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"I'm sorry" Troy said.

"It's okay" Gabriella said as she wrapped her arms around Troy's waist.

Troy leaned and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I have to go into work today for a little bit, do you want to come?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright, let me just get my keys and we will leave" Troy said.

Troy walked upstairs and picked up his car keys and walked downstairs. He entwined his fingers with Gabriella's and looked at her.

"You ready to go?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella left the house and got into the car. Troy drove to his office and parked his car. The couple got out of the car and entwined their fingers together and walked into the office. Troy walked over to his desk and picked up some papers. He then walked to his mailbox and picked up his work mail.

"Troy, nice to see you. How's your presentation planning going?" Amy asked.

Amy was one of Troy's co-workers. She had long red-orange hair and was very petite. Troy looked at Amy and smiled.

"Hey Amy, nice to see you too. I finished planning. Now, I am just putting the finishing touches on it" Troy said.

"You are always ahead of the game. Who is this?" Amy asked motioning to Gabriella.

"Amy, this is my girlfriend Gabriella. Gabi, this is Amy" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's lower back.

"Hi Gabriella, it's nice to meet you. Troy's a lucky man" Amy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy and smiled.

"I think I am the lucky one" Gabriella said.

"I just came in to pick up any documents that I need for my contract that I am working on" Troy said.

"Oh okay. Well, I will see you around then. Bye guys" Amy said as she left the couple.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"She was nice" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, she's nice. She kind of gets into everyone's business though" Troy said as he entwined his fingers with Gabriella's.

"Oh" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, when Nicole died, that's all Amy wanted to talk to me about" Troy said.

"That must have been hard on you" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, but now I am over it. Come on let's get out of here" Troy said as he walked away from his desk.

The couple left Troy's office. Troy started driving and pulled into his parents driveway.

"Why are we here?" Gabriella asked.

"My mom wanted to see us" Troy said.

"Oh" Gabriella said.

The couple got out of the car. Troy rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer the door. Jack opened the door and smiled.

"Hi guys" Jack said.

"Hi dad" Troy said.

"Hi Mr. Bolton" Gabriella said as she wrapped her arm around Troy's.

Troy looked at Gabriella and then at his dad.

"Where's mom?" Troy asked.

"Your mom is in the kitchen" Jack said.

The couple walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table.

"Hi mom" Troy said as he hugged and kissed his mother.

"Hi honey. Hi Gabriella. What's going on?" Lucille asked.

"Nothing. We were in the neighborhood so we thought we would come and see you" Troy said.

"Oh, how are you doing Gabriella?" Lucille asked.

"I'm fine Lucille" Gabriella said.

"She's been doing really well" Troy said as he looked at Gabriella.

Gabriella smiled.

"That's great. Have you had anymore flashbacks?" Lucille asked.

"I think I have only had one in the last two weeks" Gabriella said.

"That's great Gabriella. Where are you guys off to now?" Lucille asked.

"I think we are going to go back to the house and just relax" Troy said.

"Okay, well thanks for stopping by" Lucille said as she kissed Troy and Gabriella's cheeks.

Troy and Gabriella left the house. Troy drove home and parked his car in the driveway. The couple got out of the car and walked into the house. Gabriella kissed Troy's lips passionately. Troy pulled back and looked at Gabriella and smiled. He leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly. Gabriella put her hand on Troy's cheek. Troy pulled back and put his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"I don't want to take advantage of you, babe. You are still really sensitive" Troy said.

"I know you don't. I think I feel even safer than I did before because now we are together. You are right, I am still sensitive but I have gotten a lot better" Gabriella said.

"I know you do. I think that once you have gotten more comfortable around other men you will be ready. I just don't want you to do something that you are not ready for" Troy said.

Gabriella leaned in and kissed Troy's lips. Troy put his arm around Gabriella's waist and looked at Gabriella.

"Thank you for not being all the other guys I have come in contact with" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and moved a stray hair out of Gabriella's face.

"You are very welcome. I care about you and I don't want you to get hurt that's all" Troy said.

"I know" Gabriella said as she hugged Troy.

Troy hugged Gabriella and put his hand on her head.

"Do you want to help me make dinner?" Troy asked as he kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"Sure, what are we making?" Gabriella asked.

"We could make some pasta and vegetables" Troy suggested.

"That sounds good" Gabriella said.

"Alright, let's go to the kitchen" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella walked into the kitchen and started to make dinner. After the couple made dinner, they put everything on two plates and sat at the kitchen table.

"Do you want to stay in tonight?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, let's just hang out tonight" Gabriella said as she ate her food.

"We could watch movies" Troy said.

"Okay let's do that" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella finished eating and put their dishes in the dishwasher. They then walked upstairs to Troy's room and lied down on his bed. The couple watched movies for a couple of hours. When the last movie had ended, Troy looked over at Gabriella and saw that she was sleeping. He smiled and kissed her head softly. Troy turned the TV off and fell asleep. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest. The next morning, Gabriella opened her eyes and saw that she was not in the guest room. She looked next to her and saw Troy sleeping. Gabriella realized that she had fallen asleep in her boyfriend's bed. She sighed and got out of bed and walked downstairs. Gabriella went into the guest room and got into bed. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. An hour later, Troy woke up and saw that Gabriella was no longer in his room. He walked downstairs and went to the guest room and saw Gabriella sleeping. Troy walked over to Gabriella's bed and kissed her head softly. Gabriella opened her eyes slowly.

"I fell asleep in your bed last night" Gabriella said.

"I know" Troy said.

"I can't believe I did that. No offense to you or anything" Gabriella said.

"Are you upset?" Troy asked.

"I'm not upset babe. I just want everything to go slowly. Yes, I like you a lot and I have strong feelings for you but I am still dealing with all of this stuff and it just scares me because I am falling way faster than I thought I would" Gabriella said.

"Hey, come here" Troy said as he sat on Gabriella's bed.

Gabriella moved into Troy's arms and looked at him.

"I know that everything is happening really fast and I know you are still dealing with everything that you have been through. If you feel like you are falling too fast in love with me, maybe you just need to let it happen, because it's going to happen eventually right?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"It's just really scary. A month ago, I didn't even know you and now we are sleeping in the same bed" Gabriella said.

"I know it's scary Gabi, and I understand" Troy said.

Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy's waist. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly.

"So what do you want to do about this? Do you want to break up?" Troy asked.

"No! I don't want to break up with you Troy. We just need to slow down a little bit. That is all I am saying" Gabriella said.

"Okay, then let's slow down. We can watch movies downstairs and just act like we normally do. Is that okay?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, thank you for listening and understanding" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's lips.

"No problem. If you are concerned about something, just talk to me about it" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and kissed Troy's lips. Troy pulled back and smiled.

"Your cute" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"You are cuter" Gabriella said.

"No, I am not that cute. I haven't worked out in forever and my hair is just a mess" Troy said.

"But I like you as you are so you must have done something right" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Yeah" Troy said.

"What is your plan for the day?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't know. My mom told me that my dad was going to come over here at some point today" Troy said.

"Why?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't know. She just said that he is going to come over" Troy said.

"Oh okay" Gabriella said.

"How do you feel about that?" Troy asked.

"I'm a little nervous" Gabriella said.

"Babe, he is harmless. I promise you" Troy said.

"I know he is. It's just hard to see that with all of the stuff that I have been through. Men are just really difficult for me to trust because I don't want them to end up hurting me" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and his face softened.

"I know it's hard. No one is going to hurt you, Gabi. Not as long as I am in the picture okay? Do you trust me?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella had grown so much in a small amount of time. She was just starting to trust people and she didn't want to end up hurt. Troy wanted Gabriella to trust the fact that no one was going to hurt her in the way she had been in the past.


	6. I Love You

The next day, Troy woke up and stretched his body out. He turned over and remembered that Gabriella was sleeping downstairs. Troy got up and walked downstairs to the guest room. The door was open and Troy looked into the room and saw Gabriella sitting on her bed with tears running down her face. He walked into the room and sat next to Gabriella and brought her into his lap.

"What's wrong baby?" Troy asked.

"Flashbacks" Gabriella said as she wrapped her arms around Troy and cried.

Troy put his arms around Gabriella and kissed her cheek. He rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay Gabi. I'm here. You are safe" Troy said trying to calm Gabriella down.

"It's like everything happened yesterday" Gabriella said.

"I know, but you are okay and safe. Maybe you should go see a therapist. A therapist could probably help you out more than I can" Troy said.

"I don't want to talk about my problems to someone that I don't know" Gabriella said.

"I am just telling you this because I care about you. I don't like to see you like this" Troy said.

"Will it help me is the question" Gabriella said.

"Try it. If you don't like it then you don't have to go back" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I will try it. But can you come with me?" Gabriella asked.

"If you want me to, I will. But the things that you have been through in the past are not my business. The way you react toward the flashbacks, that is my business" Troy said.

"I know. Thank you" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's lips.

"You are very welcome. I have a friend who is a therapist. She is really nice and I think she could help you. Do you want me to make an appointment for you?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright and remember, I want you to do this because I want to help you and I don't want you to deal with all these flashbacks anymore" Troy said.

"I know and I appreciate it" Gabriella said.

"I am going to go make an appointment and I will be right back" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy got off Gabriella's bed and walked out of the room. He called his friend and made an appointment for Gabriella to meet with her. Ten minutes later, Troy came back into the guest room.

"Your appointment is at eleven tomorrow" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"What are we going to do today babe?" Troy asked as he lied down next to Gabriella.

"I don't know. What time is your dad coming?" Gabriella asked.

"I think he said one. Are you nervous?" Troy asked.

"A little bit. But I got you to protect me so I feel okay about it" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Good and you know that I will" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. A couple hours later, the doorbell rang. Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy smiled at Gabriella and walked to the front door and opened it.

"Hey Troy" Jack said.

"Hi dad, come on in" Troy said.

Jack and Troy walked into the living room.

"I will go get Gabriella and I will be back" Troy said.

"Alright, there is no rush" Jack said.

Troy left the room and walked to the guest room and poked his head into the room.

"Gabi, my dad is here" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella looked at herself in the mirror and then looked at Troy.

"Do I look okay?" Gabriella asked nervously.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"You look perfect Gabi. Come on" Troy said as he took Gabriella's hand.

The couple walked into the living room. Jack stood up and smiled.

"Hi Gabriella" Jack said.

"Hi Mr. Bolton" Gabriella said.

"Call me Jack, Mr. Bolton is my work name" Jack said.

"Hi Jack" Gabriella said.

"How are you doing? Lucille has been telling me that you have been making a lot of progress with trusting other people" Jack said.

"I am fine. I still have my flashbacks but otherwise I think I am okay. I'm not one hundred percent yet" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and watched his father and girlfriend interact.

"To break the ice a little bit, I thought I would bring you some pictures of Troy as a kid" Jack said.

Troy's eyes widened.

"I want to see" Gabriella said.

"What pictures?" Troy asked.

"There are some from grade school and high school" Jack said.

Jack handed Gabriella the pictures. Gabriella looked through the pictures and looked at Troy and smiled.

"You were a cute kid" Gabriella said.

Troy turned dark red and looked at Gabriella and then at his father.

"Don't worry baby, these are for my eyes only" Gabriella said.

"He was always the one that girls fell for the most" Jack said.

"I believe that" Gabriella said giggling.

Troy shook his head but smiled as he watched his father and girlfriend talk.

"Gabriella, where are you from?" Jack asked.

"I'm from Rochester. But, I have been living around here for a couple of years" Gabriella said.

"Oh that's nice. Rochester is a nice city" Jack said.

"Yeah, I loved it there" Gabriella said as she looked down at her hands.

Troy entwined their fingers together.

"Gabi loves movies especially romantic comedies, dad" Troy said changing the subject.

"Really?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, I had never watched one before and when Troy showed me one, I loved it" Gabriella said.

"Romantic comedies are fun to watch. I know that Lucille and I love them because we learn a lot from them" Jack said.

"Ew dad, I am your son remember? I don't need to visualize my parents having sex" Troy said.

Jack laughed.

"I was only kidding. But that's great that you love movies" Jack said.

The couple and Jack talked for a little while longer until Jack had to leave. Troy walked his father out and closed the door and smiled. He walked into the kitchen where Gabriella was washing her hands and wrapped his arms around her from behind. Gabriella turned her head and smiled.

"I'm so proud of you babe. You did great with my dad" Troy said.

"Thanks, I think I felt better seeing him again because I was a little familiar with him already. That's how it was with Chad, Jason, and Zeke" Gabriella said.

"Good I am glad. Don't you feel relieved that its over?" Troy asked.

"Yeah because I can finally go on with my life. I am going to have issues with me for the rest of my life but if I know that the men I meet won't hurt me, then I think I will be okay" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and Gabriella turned around. Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly, but passionately. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy's neck and kissed him back. Troy pulled away and smiled.

"I am going to ask you a serious question okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Do you want to have sex?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy and was silent.

"If you don't, then it's fine. I was just wondering" Troy said.

Gabriella thought for a minute and wrapped her arms around Troy's neck.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

"Are you sure babe? I don't want to push you" Troy said.

"I'm sure Troy. You actually care about how I feel and what I want. That's all I ever wanted" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips again.

"Okay" Troy said.

Gabriella kissed Troy's lips passionately. Troy carefully lifted Gabriella into his arms without breaking the kiss. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy's neck and deepened the kiss. Troy walked upstairs with Gabriella in his arms. Once they reached the bedroom, Troy carefully put Gabriella on his bed. Gabriella pulled back breathlessly and smiled. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's waist and kissed her passionately and put his hand under Gabriella's shirt.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, keep going please" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Okay" Troy said.

Troy took Gabriella's shirt off carefully and kissed her lips again. Gabriella removed Troy's shirt and pulled back and removed Troy's pants. Troy smiled.

"Slow down baby, there's no rush" Troy said breathlessly.

Gabriella nodded and kissed Troy's lips again. Troy carefully removed Gabriella's pants and unhooked her bra. Troy started kissing Gabriella's neck softly. He moved his hands down to her underwear and he felt Gabriella's body flinch. Troy pulled away.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked concerned.

"Yeah, it's just a habit. Sorry babe, keep going" Gabriella said.

Troy carefully removed Gabriella's underwear. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy's neck and with one hand removed his boxers. Troy pulled back slowly.

"You ready?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella made love for the first time that night. The next morning, Gabriella woke up and remembered what she and Troy did the night before. She smiled and looked at Troy, who was sleeping. Gabriella kissed Troy's cheek softly. Troy opened his eyes slowly and smiled.

"Hey" Gabriella said smiling.

"Hey" Troy said smiling.

"Last night was fun" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, it was. Who knew that you had so much passion in you?" Troy said.

Gabriella giggled.

"I am glad that I did it with you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and put his arm around Gabriella's bare back.

"I'm glad that I did it with you too" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

Gabriella smiled.

"I feel at peace" Gabriella said.

"Why is that?" Troy asked.

"I had consensual sex with someone who cares about me and that didn't just want me for sex" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I'm glad you feel that way baby" Troy said.

"It's all thanks to you" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's lips passionately.

Troy smiled and moved a stray hair behind Gabriella's ear.

"Can I be really honest with you babe?" Troy asked.

"Sure" Gabriella said.

"I haven't had a night like that in my whole life and it made us stronger as a couple I think. My feelings have changed a little bit towards you" Troy said.

Gabriella's eyes widened.

"What are your feelings now?" Gabriella asked worriedly.

"Babe, relax. There good feelings. Really good ones. I love you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Really?" Gabriella asked softly.

"Really baby. I love you. You and I have both been through a lot and we can connect on that level. You make me want to get up in the morning and just be really happy. Nobody has ever done that to me before" Troy said.

"I love you too Troy" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"You literally saved my life. If you didn't pick me up that day at the market, I would still be on the street. You have made me feel like a woman and not just a toy that men wanted to have sex with. Telling you about everything that I have been through and hearing that you have gone through things too, makes me feel like you really understand about what I have gone through" Gabriella said.

Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too Troy" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and put his hand on Gabriella's cheek.

"So what do we do now?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. I guess we can keep doing what we are doing" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded. Gabriella kissed Troy's lips softly.

"I am going to go take a shower. I will be right back" Gabriella said as she wrapped Troy's bed sheet around her body and got off the bed.

"Alright" Troy said.

Gabriella walked downstairs and picked out her clothes and walked into the bathroom and took a shower. Meanwhile, Troy was upstairs in bed and smiling. He was so happy that Gabriella was in his life and he couldn't see his life without her. Troy was pulled out of his thoughts when Gabriella came back into the room.

"So what is the plan for today?" Gabriella asked.

"Well, I think Chad is going to come over later. We were going to play some basketball" Troy said.

"You play basketball?" Gabriella asked.

"I did in high school. Now, it's just something that clears my head and makes me think of the important things in my life" Troy said.

"I have never played basketball" Gabriella said.

"If you want, I can teach you how to play" Troy said.

"Really?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Let me get up and we will go to the backyard" Troy said.

"Okay, thank you baby" Gabriella said.

"No problem" Troy said as he got up and got dressed.

After Troy got dressed, the couple walked downstairs and went to the backyard. Troy picked up his basketball and bounced it in front of him.

"Okay, so the object of basketball is to get the ball into the hoop. But you have to get it passed me" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Troy taught Gabriella how to play basketball and were going to play a one on one game.

"Are you ready to lose?" Troy asked jokingly.

"The real question should be are you ready to lose?" Gabriella asked jokingly as she raised her eyebrows.

Troy and Gabriella started playing until Gabriella had the ball in her hands and was about to shoot when Troy picked her up and spun her around.

"Hey, that's not fair. You lose" Gabriella said as she wrapped her legs around Troy's waist.

"But I still win though" Troy said.

"How?" Gabriella asked as she wrapped her arms around Troy's neck.

"Because I got you. That is a win for me" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's cheek.

Gabriella giggled.

"You are crazy Troy, but don't worry, I still love you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I love you too. Have you had enough basketball for the day?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, I am tired" Gabriella said as she leaned her head against Troy's.

"I think Chad will be coming over soon, so we probably need to go inside" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and got off of Troy. The couple walked into the house. An hour later, the doorbell rang. Gabriella walked to the front door and opened it.

"Hi Chad" Gabriella said.

"Hey Gabriella, what's been going on?" Chad asked.

"Nothing much. Troy is upstairs, I will go get him" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Chad said.

Gabriella walked upstairs and went into the bathroom to see Troy shirtless. She smiled and looked at her boyfriend.

"Looking good baby" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled. He walked over and kissed Gabriella's lips passionately.

"Chad is here" Gabriella said.

"Okay, I am coming" Troy said.

Troy put his shirt on and walked downstairs with Gabriella. Chad smiled when he saw Troy. The two men shook hands.

"Hey man" Troy said.

"Hey, how's everything going?" Chad asked.

"Everything is good, really good" Troy said as he put his arm around Gabriella's waist.

"You guys are in love aren't you?" Chad asked.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

Troy and Chad smiled.

"You are more talkative, Gabriella. I am glad that Troy has been able to help you" Chad said.

"I am glad that he has too" Gabriella said.

"Well, I just wanted to stop by and see how things were going" Chad said.

"Thanks man" Troy said as he shook Chad's hand.

"No problem. Bye Gabriella" Chad said.

"Bye Chad" Gabriella said.

Chad left the house and Troy looked at Gabriella.

"What do you want to do?" Troy asked.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" Gabriella asked.

"Alright, what are we watching?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. You pick" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella walked upstairs. Gabriella got into Troy's bed while Troy put a movie into the DVD player. Troy walked over to his bed and got in. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest. The credits of the movie started and Gabriella looked at Troy.

"What is The Notebook (do not own) about?" Gabriella asked.

"It's a love story between two people who were really different and they fall in love. It's kind of like us" Troy said.

"That sounds interesting" Gabriella said.

The couple watched the movie. Halfway through, Gabriella had tears running down her face. Troy noticed and wrapped his arms around her.

"They are perfect for each other. It's beautiful" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"This movie reminds me of us" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. After the movie ended, Gabriella kissed Troy passionately. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's cheek and kissed her back. Gabriella pulled back and nodded. Troy got the message and smiled. He started removing her clothing as Gabriella removed his. The couple made love with passion. A couple weeks later, Gabriella felt sick. She was throwing up everything she consumed. Troy was getting concerned. One morning, Gabriella was in the bathroom with the door closed and Troy walked over to the door and knocked politely.

"Baby, are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I don't feel good" Gabriella said through the door.

"Can I come in?" Troy asked.

Gabriella opened the bathroom door and looked at Troy. Gabriella's body looked exhausted. Her eyes looked like she hadn't slept for days and her face was white as a ghost.

"Come on, let's get you back to bed" Troy said as he helped Gabriella walk back to the bedroom.

Gabriella got into bed and looked at Troy.

"I don't know what's wrong with me" Gabriella said.

"You are sick babe. You probably have the flu or something" Troy said.

"Mm" Gabriella said as she closed her eyes.

"Just get some rest okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will be downstairs if you need me" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy left the room and walked downstairs. He knew that Gabriella was just sick and needed rest. The next day, Troy woke up and saw Gabriella running to the bathroom. He ran after her and followed her into the bathroom. Gabriella regurgitated the remains in her stomach. After she finished, Gabriella looked at Troy.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Sick" Gabriella said.

"Maybe Taylor should check you out and make sure it's nothing serious" Troy said as he wiped Gabriella's face with a cold washcloth.

Gabriella nodded.

"Do you want me to make an appointment for you?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright" Troy said.

"Thank you baby" Gabriella said.

"No problem, come on I will help you get back into bed" Troy said as he helped Gabriella stand up.

Troy and Gabriella walked back to the bedroom. Gabriella got into bed and looked at Troy.

"I am going to call Taylor's office and see when you can go in" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy called Taylor and got an appointment for Gabriella. He was really concerned about her and he hoped that her sickness wasn't anything serious.


	7. We Will Get Through This Together

The next day, Gabriella woke up and felt nauseous. She got out of bed quickly and ran to the bathroom. Gabriella kneeled in front of the toilet and released the remains in her stomach. Troy woke up when he heard a noise coming from the bathroom. He quickly got up and walked to the bathroom and saw Gabriella regurgitating everything that she had consumed the day before. Troy walked into the bathroom and kneeled down next to Gabriella and rubbed her back soothingly. Once Gabriella had finished, she stood up and walked to the sink and brushed her teeth.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Sick. What's wrong with me?" Gabriella asked.

Troy's face softened as he listened to his upset girlfriend. He opened his arms and Gabriella walked into them.

"Hey, you are just sick sweetie. Everything is going to be fine. Taylor is probably going to give you some medication to help you not feel sick anymore" Troy said.

"I feel exhausted but I just woke up" Gabriella said as she closed her eyes.

"Your appointment is in hour so we need to get ready to go. Do you need to throw up again or are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I am okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright. When we come back, you can go back to sleep" Troy said.

Gabriella walked out of the bathroom and went downstairs to the guest room and picked out her clothes. She then walked into the bathroom and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella was ready to go. She walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and saw Troy picking up his keys.

"Are you ready to go?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, let's go" Troy said taking Gabriella's hand.

The couple left the house. Troy drove to Taylor's office and parked his car. Troy and Gabriella got out of the car and walked into the office. Troy signed Gabriella in and sat next to her. Gabriella leaned her head against Troy's shoulder. A couple minutes later, a nurse who had dark brown hair and was very petite came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy and Gabriella stood up and followed the nurse into a room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. The nurse then escorted the couple into an exam room.

"Dr. McKessie will be in soon" the nurse said as she left the room.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Still feeling sick?" Troy asked as he rubbed her back.

Gabriella nodded.

"Let's just get your medication and see what happens" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

There was a knock on the door and Taylor came into the room smiling.

"Hi guys, how's it going?" Taylor asked the couple.

"Gabriella has been feeling sick" Troy said.

Taylor looked at Gabriella.

"What's been going on?" Taylor asked.

"I have been throwing up non-stop and have been really tired. Troy thinks I have the flu but it won't go away" Gabriella explained.

"Let me examine you and see what is going on" Taylor said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella lied down on the bed and looked at Troy. Troy took Gabriella's hand in his. Taylor examined Gabriella from head to toe.

"Gabriella, have you been sexually active in the last couple of weeks?" Taylor asked.

"Yes, but what does that have to do with the flu?" Gabriella asked.

"I do not think you have the flu, Gabriella. I need you to take a pregnancy test for me" Taylor said as she opened a drawer and took a pregnancy test out and handed it to Gabriella.

"Okay" Gabriella said worriedly.

Troy entwined his fingers with Gabriella's. Gabriella looked at Troy and felt embarrassed.

"The bathroom is down the hall" Taylor said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked out of the exam room and went to the bathroom. She took the pregnancy test and handed it to Taylor.

"Give me a couple minutes and I will come back with your results" Taylor said.

Gabriella nodded as she sat back down next to Troy. Taylor left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Gabi, everything is going to be okay" Troy said.

"I may be pregnant Troy with your baby" Gabriella said.

"I know and I know you are scared. I am too" Troy said.

"We should have waited" Gabriella said.

"If we waited, it would have happened too babe. Let's just see what happens and we will figure everything out" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. There was a knock on the door and Taylor came back into the room.

"I have your results, Gabriella" Taylor said.

"Am I pregnant?" Gabriella asked worriedly.

"Yes Gabriella. You are pregnant" Taylor said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy put his arm around Gabriella and kissed her head.

"Thanks Tay" Troy said.

"No problem, Troy. I will see you guys soon" Taylor said as she left the room.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Babe, look at me" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy with tears running down her face. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I'm sorry" Gabriella choked.

"Hey, why are you sorry Gabi? You don't have anything to be sorry for. Yes, this baby was very unexpected but we have grown so much since we first met and I know that this baby will bring us even closer" Troy said.

Gabriella just cried. Troy knew that she was starting to shut him out. He kissed Gabriella's head.

"I love you" Troy said.

"You still love me?" Gabriella asked.

"Yes babe. I do. We had sex. Every couple has sex. Could I have taken precautions? Yes I could have. But we need to focus on what's going on right now. We are going to have a baby" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She wrapped her arms around her boyfriend. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek softly.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"It's going to take some getting used to, but I think I will be. Thanks for calming me down" Gabriella said.

"You are welcome. Come on, let's go home" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The couple left the office. He drove home and parked his car in the driveway. Troy and Gabriella got out of the car. The couple walked into the house.

"Babe? Come here" Troy said as he walked into the living room.

Gabriella followed Troy and sat next to him on the couch.

"Tell me how you are really feeling about this" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"I'm scared Troy and I know it must be affecting you too" Gabriella said.

Troy knew exactly what she meant. He cleared his throat and looked at Gabriella.

"Baby, I know you are scared of what is going to happen. That's normal. We just found out that we are going to become parents to a baby, that's a lot to take in. It only affects me when it bothers you. Don't worry about my past with the baby. This is a fresh start for you and I" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She snuggled into Troy's chest.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too. When do you want to tell my parents?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's flat stomach.

"Whenever you want to" Gabriella said.

"Okay, what else is on your mind?" Troy asked.

"Everything is going through my head. I'm just surprised that I'm pregnant" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"Everything will be okay. I will call Taylor and see who she recommends that we go to so we can find out how far along you are" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will also call my parents and see when they are available so we can tell them" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I will go call Tay and my parents and figure out everything okay? Go upstairs and take a nap" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and got into bed. She fell asleep as soon as she her head hit the pillow. Meanwhile, Troy was downstairs calling Taylor and his parents. After he talked to them, Troy walked upstairs and looked into the bedroom and smiled when he saw Gabriella sleeping. Troy walked into the bedroom and kissed Gabriella's head softly. He walked downstairs and started working on a paper for work. A couple hours later, Gabriella woke up and got out of bed. She walked downstairs and went into the living room and saw Troy working on something for work. Gabriella walked over to her boyfriend and wrapped her arms around him. Troy turned around and smiled.

"Hey, did you have a nice nap?" Troy asked as he kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"What are you thinking about?" Troy asked.

"Do you think I will be a good mother? I mean, I have been through a lot and I lost my parents at a young age. I don't even know how to be a mother Troy" Gabriella said as tears ran down her face.

"Baby, you are going to be an amazing mother. I know that it's been hard on you with all of the flashbacks that are going through your head right now. When he or she is born, you will know how to take care of the baby. Your motherly instincts will kick in and our baby will be perfect" Troy said as he wiped Gabriella's tears away.

"I hope so. Did you call Taylor and see if she knew any doctors?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, she gave me the name and she also set up an appointment for you tomorrow at eleven. I also called my parents and told them that we want to see them and they told me to come tonight" Troy said.

"Okay. Thank you baby" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's lips.

"You are welcome. How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"I feel okay. I'm a little tired and nauseous but other than that I am okay" Gabriella said.

"Did you throw up again?" Troy asked.

"No" Gabriella said.

"Okay, come on let's go to my parents and tell them the big news" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella left the house. Troy drove to his parents house and parked his car. The couple got out of the car and walked to the front door. Troy entwined their fingers and rang the doorbell. A few moments later, Lucille opened the door.

"Hi guys, come on in" Lucille said as she hugged and kissed the couple.

"Where is dad?" Troy asked.

"He is in the office" Lucille said.

"Can you please bring him over here? We need to tell you both something" Troy said.

"Alright, I will go get him" Lucille said.

Lucille left the room and came back with Jack. The four adults sat down and looked at each other.

"What's going on guys?" Jack asked.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Do you want to tell them or do you want me to?" Troy asked.

"You tell them" Gabriella said.

"Someone tell us what's going on" Lucille said.

"Gabriella's pregnant" Troy said.

"Oh honey" Lucille said as she hugged Gabriella.

Gabriella hugged Lucille and looked at Troy. Troy smiled.

"Are you mad?" Gabriella asked.

Lucille kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"I'm not Gabriella. It's just shocking. But I am happy for you both. I know that if your parents were alive, they would be happy too" Lucille said.

Tears ran down Gabriella's cheeks. Troy walked over to Gabriella and hugged her. He rubbed her back soothingly.

"Do you know how far along you are?" Lucille asked.

"No, we are going to the doctor tomorrow to find out" Troy said.

"Oh, well I am happy and I love you both" Lucille said.

Troy and Gabriella smiled.

"I love you too mom" Troy said.

"I love you too Lucille" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella left the Bolton home. The couple got into the car and looked at each other.

"That went well" Troy said.

"Yeah, I was surprised that your mom was okay with it" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her flat stomach.

"My mom is the type of person that loves everyone she knows and cares about them deeply. She cares about you because she loves you as a person and because I love you too" Troy said as he drove.

"That's good to know" Gabriella said.

"Are you scared about your appointment tomorrow?" Troy asked.

"A little bit. I don't know what to expect" Gabriella said.

"I'm scared a little bit too but at least we will be able to go through it together" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. The couple got out of the car and walked into the house. Troy and Gabriella walked upstairs and went into the bedroom.

"I am going to go bed. I am really tired" Gabriella said as she changed into her pajamas.

"Okay. Are you feeling alright babe?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, I am just tired" Gabriella said as she got into bed.

"Okay. Good night. I love you" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

"Good night. I love you too" Gabriella said.

Troy got into bed and Gabriella snuggled into his body. The couple fell asleep and dreamed about life with a baby would be like. The next morning, Gabriella woke up to a familiar wave of nausea. She got up quickly and ran to the bathroom. Troy woke up and saw Gabriella run and got up and ran after her. Gabriella kneeled in front of the toilet and regurgitated the remains in her stomach. Troy rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay Gabi. Just relax" Troy said.

Gabriella continued to throw up until she gasped for air. She got up and brushed her teeth. After she finished, Gabriella looked at Troy.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Pregnant" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"We need to get ready to go. Your appointment is in an hour" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The couple walked out of the bathroom and went into their bedroom and got ready to go. Troy and Gabriella walked downstairs and left the house. Troy drove to the doctor's office and parked his car. The couple got out of the car and walked into the office. Troy signed Gabriella in and sat down next to her.

"Are you still nervous?" Troy asked.

"A little bit" Gabriella said.

"Everything will fine be, Gabi. I will be with you the whole time" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. A nurse came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy and Gabriella stood up and followed the nurse into an exam room.

"Gabriella please change into this gown and Dr. Menard will be with you shortly" the nurse said as she handed Gabriella the gown.

The nurse left and Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Do you want me to step out so you can change?" Troy asked.

"No. You have already seen me naked so it doesn't matter" Gabriella said as she took her clothes off.

Gabriella changed into the gown and sat on the exam table.

"Who do you think the baby will look like?" Gabriella asked.

"I think the baby will look like you" Troy said.

"I hope he or she looks like me. I mean, I made the baby too" Gabriella joked.

Troy laughed. There was a knock on the door and Dr. Menard came into the room. Dr. Menard had long red hair and her skin was very pale.

"Hi Gabriella, Dr. McKessie has told me a lot about you. She told me that you are pregnant" Dr. Menard said.

"Yeah, I just found out that I am pregnant. My boyfriend and I wanted to know how far along I am" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard looked at Troy and smiled.

"Are you Gabriella's boyfriend?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yes, I'm Troy" Troy said.

"Hi Troy. Okay Gabriella, let me take a look and see how far along you are" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard washed her hands and dried them. She then turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. After the ultrasound had heated, Dr. Menard pulled Gabriella's gown above her stomach and squeezed gel onto it. Gabriella took Troy's hand. Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand, letting her know that he was there for her. Dr. Menard moved the gel around with a wand and looked at the monitor.

"Alright, there is your baby Gabriella" Dr. Menard said as she pointed to the screen.

"How far along am I?" Gabriella asked.

Dr. Menard moved the wand around Gabriella's stomach.

"You are eight weeks pregnant" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella smiled and looked at Troy. Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's head.

"Thank you Dr. Menard" Troy said.

"You are welcome, I will see you in a month" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard left the room. Gabriella sat up and looked at Troy and smiled.

"Eight weeks pregnant. We have seven months until we meet the baby" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Are you happy?" Troy asked.

"I'm so happy" Gabriella said.

"Good, come on. Let's go home. I will call my parents and tell them how far along you are" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

The couple left Dr. Menard's office and drove home. Troy parked his car and Troy and Gabriella got out of the car and walked into the house. Troy and Gabriella walked into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"I can't believe I am eight weeks pregnant" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her stomach.

"I know, I can't wait until we can actually see him or her on the monitor" Troy said putting his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"I wish my mom was here. Who can I go to if I need help?" Gabriella asked.

"Baby, I know you wish your mom was here. I also know that pregnancy is supposed to be a thing that brings mothers and daughters together. You always can talk to my mom if you need to" Troy said.

"Your mom would help me?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course she would. You are having her grandchild, babe" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too" Troy said.

The rest of the day, the couple talked about the baby and what life would be like once the baby came.


	8. A Baby Makes People Think

The next couple of days went by slowly. Gabriella had been throwing up non-stop and has just been miserable. Troy didn't know how to help Gabriella. The only thing he could do was be there when she needed him. One day, Gabriella had just finished throwing up and had gone back to bed. Troy got back into bed and kissed Gabriella's forehead softly. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest and looked at him.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"I feel sick" Gabriella said.

Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly.

"Do you want me to do anything?" Troy asked.

"Just stay here" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"We should have asked Dr. Menard when morning sickness is supposed to stop" Gabriella said.

"Yeah we should have. Next month when we go, you should ask" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. A couple hours later, Troy got up and got ready for work. He felt bad that he had to leave Gabriella by herself when she wasn't feeling well.

"Are you sure that you will be okay for a couple of hours?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, I will be fine. Go to the office and get some stuff done" Gabriella said.

"I will stay home if you need me too, babe" Troy said.

"Troy, go to work. I will be fine, I promise" Gabriella said.

"Alright. I will be home in a couple hours okay? I love you" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

"Call me if you need anything" Troy said.

Gabriella walked Troy to the front door and kissed him one last time. Troy left the house and Gabriella closed the door. She walked into the living room and looked down at her stomach.

"I can't wait to meet you baby" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her flat stomach.

A couple hours later, a very tired Troy opened the front door. He put his keys down and walked upstairs. Troy walked into the bedroom and smiled when he saw Gabriella looking at her bare stomach. He walked over to the bed and got on it and kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"What are we doing?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked up at Troy and smiled.

"I'm looking at my stomach. I can't believe the baby is really in there" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her stomach.

Troy smiled and put his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"I know. When Nicole was pregnant with our daughter, I couldn't stop looking at her stomach. I thought it was so crazy that something we both made was living in it" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"How was work?" Gabriella asked.

"Exhausting. I am trying to write a bunch of contracts and just everything is piling up" Troy said.

"I'm sorry Troy. Maybe, you need to do something relaxing" Gabriella said raising her eyebrows.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's lips.

"Maybe later. I think I am going to play some basketball in the backyard" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek and got off the bed and left the room. He walked downstairs and went to the backyard. Troy picked up the basketball and started dribbling it around the cement floor. He needed some time to think. Troy was beyond thrilled that Gabriella was pregnant with his child but it reminded him of his past and what happened with Nicole and his child. Troy threw the basketball into the hoop. He then sat down in the middle of backyard.

_Flashback _

_"Alright, Nicole. On the next contraction, you need to push" the doctor said. _

_Nicole looked at Troy. Troy kissed Nicole's head softly. _

_"It's here" Nicole said painfully. _

_Nicole started pushing. After an hour of pushing, she was unresponsive and so was the baby. _

_"Nicole, come on. Wake up baby" Troy pleaded. _

_"Troy, they are gone. I am so sorry" the doctor said. _

_End of Flashback. _

Troy had tears running down his face when he thought of the day that Nicole and his child died. He was so deep in thought that Troy didn't hear the back door open. Gabriella looked at Troy concerned.

"Troy, are you okay?" Gabriella asked concerned.

Troy was pulled out of his thoughts and looked at a very concerned Gabriella.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Troy said.

Gabriella walked over to her boyfriend and sat in front of him.

"What's going on?" Gabriella asked.

"Nothing baby. Everything is fine" Troy said taking her hand in his.

"Why are you crying?" Gabriella asked as she wiped a tear that was running down Troy's face.

"I was just thinking about some stuff, that's all" Troy said.

"Babe, please tell me what's going on. Your worrying me" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed.

"I just am thinking about Nicole and the baby" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy. She moved closer to him and hugged him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Gabriella asked.

Troy sniffled. Gabriella rubbed his back.

"I saw everything that happened that day again. From Nicole's labor to when the doctor pronounced both of them dead" Troy said.

"I'm so sorry, Troy" Gabriella said.

"Maybe you and this baby are my second chance" Troy said.

Gabriella kissed Troy's cheek.

"I'm not going to die on you babe. I promise you that" Gabriella said.

"Thanks Gabi. I think everything just hit me. We are going to have a baby and just the memories of everything that happened with Nicole just came back and I just got scared" Troy said.

"I know and that's okay. Everything will be fine. You need to relax" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded. Gabriella leaned her head against Troy's shoulder.

"Is there anything else that's bothering you?" Gabriella asked.

"Are you scared to have our baby?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled and nodded.

"Yes, I'm petrified Troy. I don't know what to expect. I don't know anything about pregnancy" Gabriella said.

Troy put his finger under Gabriella's chin and brought it up towards him.

"Baby, I know you are scared. It's going to be a learning process. We just need to take everything as it comes. Do you want to get some pregnancy books? You will read about the different things that happen during pregnancy. Would that help?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, can you read them with me?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course" Troy said.

"Alright, when do you want to go get them?" Gabriella asked.

"Do you want to go now?" Troy asked.

"Sure" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said as he got up.

Troy helped Gabriella stand up. The couple walked into the house and Troy grabbed his keys. Troy and Gabriella left the house and got into the car. They drove to the bookstore and bought a couple of pregnancy books and drove home. Troy and Gabriella walked into the house and went into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"So where do you want to start?" Troy asked looking at the pregnancy books that they had purchased.

"Let's start with this one" Gabriella said taking the book in her arms.

"Okay" Troy said.

Gabriella and Troy opened the book and started reading it. An hour later, Gabriella's head was leaning against Troy's shoulder.

"I could be in labor for days?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't think you will babe. Some people can though" Troy said.

"But I will be in labor for hours" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, but that's because it's your first child. When and if you do have a second child, it's supposed to be faster than your first" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"The birth scares me a little bit" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, me too. But you will be fine baby and I will be right next to you" Troy said.

"I'm scared of the pain" Gabriella said.

"You can always get an epidural" Troy said.

"Yeah, I guess" Gabriella said.

Troy closed the book and looked at Gabriella.

"I think that we have read enough for the day" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

"Do you think the baby will be a boy or a girl?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. I would love a little girl, but most importantly I want it to be healthy" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, me too" Troy said.

Gabriella kissed Troy's lips softly. Troy kissed her back passionately. Gabriella smiled into the kiss and Troy put his arms around her. Troy lifted Gabriella into his arms. Gabriella pulled back slowly.

"Is it safe?" Gabriella asked.

"Yes, it's safe. Nicole and I had sex when she was pregnant" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella again.

"Bedroom" Gabriella mumbled.

Troy picked Gabriella up and walked upstairs and went into their bedroom. He set Gabriella carefully on the bed. Troy and Gabriella started taking each other's clothes off. Once all their clothes had been removed, Troy kissed Gabriella's lips passionately.

"You ready baby?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella made love for hours. Later that night, Troy and Gabriella were in bed talking about the baby.

"Are you scared about the baby?" Gabriella asked as she put her hand on Troy's bare chest.

"Yeah, I mean even though it's my second child, I still feel nervous because of everything that happened. I know how everything is supposed to go but it just brings back memories that are really difficult to think about. I want you and the baby to be safe, that's what I care about" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Everything will be okay, we just need to take it all day by day" Gabriella said.

Troy put his hand on Gabriella's stomach and kissed her lips.

"You always know how to make me feel better" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I try" Gabriella said.

"You are going to be a great mom, baby. I want you to know that" Troy said randomly.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips.

"You are going to be a great dad, Troy and I am sure you would have been a good dad to your first baby" Gabriella said.

"Thanks Gabi. Can I be honest with you about something?" Troy asked.

"Sure" Gabriella said.

"I think about what my daughter would have been like and who she looked like all the time. Sometimes, I wonder why she had to die" Troy said.

Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest and kissed his cheek.

"Baby, I am sure that your daughter would have been beautiful. She probably would have been sweet and loving like you. Sometimes, things just happen that you can't control" Gabriella said.

Troy nodded.

"I'm sorry for telling you all of this. I am happy that we are having a baby, it just bring up things that are hard to think about, like I said earlier" Troy said.

"Hey" Gabriella said moving Troy's face directly in front of hers.

"You went through something that is tragic and it hurts. It hurts me that you went through all of it. Don't feel bad for telling me what's on your mind, Troy. You know that you can talk to me about all of that, don't you?" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and nodded. He leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Thank you and yeah I know that. I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

The couple talked for a little while longer until they fell asleep. The next morning, Gabriella woke up to a familiar wave of nausea. She ran to the bathroom with Troy running right behind her. Gabriella kneeled in front of the toilet and regurgitated the remains in her stomach. Troy rubbed her back soothingly and kissed her head.

"It's okay sweetie, let it out" Troy said.

Gabriella continued to throw up until she gasped for air and backed away from the toilet. Troy helped Gabriella stand up. Gabriella walked to the sink and brushed her teeth. She then walked over to Troy and wrapped her arms around him.

"How are you feeling today?" Troy asked.

"Lousy" Gabriella said tiredly.

Troy rubbed Gabriella's back gently.

"Do you want me to make you some tea?" Troy asked.

"No, I think I am going to go back to sleep" Gabriella said.

"Alright, come on" Troy said taking Gabriella's hand in his and leading her into the bedroom.

Gabriella got back into bed and looked at Troy.

"Yell for me if you need anything okay?" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

Gabriella nodded. Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I love you too. Get some rest" Troy said.

Troy left the bedroom and walked downstairs. He was about to sit down on the couch when the doorbell rang. Troy walked to the front door and opened it. Chad smiled when he saw Troy.

"Hey man, how's it going?" Chad asked.

"Everything's fine. Gabi is just dealing with morning sickness so it's been kind of difficult" Troy said.

"Aw, how's that going?" Chad asked.

"She's throwing up every morning, Chad. It's scary" Troy said.

"Is there anything you can do to help her?" Chad asked.

"I just have to be there when she needs me, Chad. That's all I can do" Troy said.

Gabriella walked downstairs and went into the living room and saw Chad and Troy talking. Chad smiled.

"Hi Gabriella, how are you feeling?" Chad asked.

"I feel okay. Throwing up every day isn't something that I want to do but I am dealing with it" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled. Gabriella sat down next to Troy.

"Did you have a nice nap?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, the baby is making me so tired" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and put his arm around Gabriella.

"How far along are you Gabriella?" Chad asked.

"Ten weeks" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"That's awesome. Are you excited to be a mother?" Chad asked.

"I'm excited but I am scared at the same time" Gabriella said.

"I think that's normal though. I remember when Troy told me that Nicole was pregnant and he freaked out" Chad said.

Troy just looked at Chad and shook his head.

"Let's not talk about that" Troy said.

Chad sighed.

"You have to get over it soon, Troy. You are dating another girl and she's having your baby" Chad said.

"Chad, just stop talking about it" Gabriella said.

Chad looked up at Gabriella and saw how concerned she was. Gabriella looked at Troy and put her hand on his cheek. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"I'm sorry that I brought it up, man" Chad said.

"No, it's okay. I do need to accept the fact that they are gone and I am with another woman and she is having my baby. But Chad, have you ever lost a child?" Troy asked.

Troy got up and walked out of the room. He walked upstairs and closed the bedroom door. Meanwhile, Chad looked at Gabriella.

"I didn't mean to upset him, Gabriella. I am worried about him and I know you are too. I understand that it's difficult to lose both your girlfriend and your child but he has moved on with his life. He needs to put all the thoughts about it behind him" Chad said.

"It's just been really hard for him. When I got pregnant, he told me everything and I felt his pain. You can never get over losing a child, Chad. I know that if I ever lost my baby I wouldn't get over it either" Gabriella said.

"Can you tell him that I'm sorry please? I feel horrible" Chad said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I will" Gabriella said.

"Thanks, Gabriella" Chad said.

Chad left the house. Gabriella walked upstairs and walked to the bedroom and saw that the door was closed. She didn't want to barge in so Gabriella knocked on the door politely.

"Troy, are you okay?" Gabriella asked.

Troy opened the door and looked at Gabriella.

"Baby, are you okay?" Gabriella repeated.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just got a little upset. That's all" Troy said.

"Are you sure?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, I promise. Thanks for checking on me" Troy said.

"No problem. Chad told me that he wants you to know that he is sorry and he didn't mean to upset you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled slightly.

"I accept it. I don't want to talk about Nicole or the baby anymore. Chad is right. I need to move on" Troy said.

"Troy, you always have those memories of Nicole. That's normal. But he just was saying that you just need to put those feelings aside right now" Gabriella said.

"I know and I am sorry for bringing her up all the time" Troy said.

"Hey, don't be sorry baby. You listen to me cry about my flashbacks. I want to hear what you are thinking about all of this, but there is a point where you need to relax a little" Gabriella said carefully.

Troy nodded. He leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I love you and thanks" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

A couple weeks later, Gabriella was three months pregnant and starting to show. You could barely tell that she had a baby bump, but it was there. Troy was so happy when Gabriella was starting to show. The pregnancy felt more real to them.

"Baby, how big am I actually going to end up?" Gabriella asked as she looked at her small bump in the bathroom.

"You will get a lot bigger, sweetie. The baby has to have somewhere to grow" Troy said.

"Yeah, I guess it does. My whole body is going to be turned upside down" Gabriella said.

"But, you will still look beautiful" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's cheek.

Gabriella rolled her eyes playfully.

"You are supposed to say that. You are my boyfriend" Gabriella said.

"It's true though. You look beautiful babe. Pregnancy is a good look for you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. She wrapped her arms around Troy's neck.

"Thanks" Gabriella said.

"You are welcome. I love you and I love our baby" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's expanding stomach.

Gabriella smiled and leaned in and kissed Troy's lips.

"I love you and our baby too" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. The couple was happy that they were able to get through the things they have gone through in the past together. They were so happy that their baby was starting to grow and make the pregnancy more real to them.


	9. Bump In The Road

The next day Gabriella had a doctor's appointment with Dr. Menard to see how much the baby has grown in the last couple of weeks. Gabriella and Troy were in bed sleeping. Troy was sleeping on his and had his hand under Gabriella's bump. Gabriella opened her eyes and felt nauseous. She looked at Troy, who was still asleep, and got up and ran to the bathroom. Troy woke up and looked at the bathroom door. He got up quickly and walked into the bathroom and put his hand on Gabriella's back. Gabriella regurgitated everything that was in her stomach.

"Everything is okay baby, just relax" Troy said.

Gabriella gasped for air but then started throwing up again. Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly. Once Gabriella finished, Troy helped her stand up. She walked to the sink and brushed her teeth. After she finished, Gabriella looked at Troy.

"How are you feeling today?" Troy asked as he wrapped his arms around Gabriella.

"Tired and sick" Gabriella said.

"I'm sorry baby. I wish I could do something to help you" Troy said as he looked at Gabriella.

"Just staying with me makes me feel better" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"You have an appointment with Dr. Menard today" Troy said.

"Yeah, I wonder how big the baby is" Gabriella said.

"I am sure he or she is growing because your bump is growing" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's small baby bump.

Gabriella nodded.

"I am going to take a shower and then we will leave" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

Gabriella picked out her clothes and walked into the bathroom and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella came out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed. She walked downstairs and went into the kitchen and saw Troy pouring himself a cup of coffee. Gabriella kissed Troy's cheek softly.

"Are you feeling a little better?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella said pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"I was reading a little bit of the pregnancy book and it said that you can't drink coffee while you are pregnant. The caffeine has a chemical in it that could harm the baby" Troy said.

Gabriella put the cup of coffee down.

"I can't believe I almost drank that" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Are you ready to go?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, let's go" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

The couple left the house and drove to Dr. Menard's office. Troy parked his car and the couple got out of the car. Troy and Gabriella entwined their fingers as they walked into the office. Gabriella signed herself in and the couple sat down. A few minutes later, a nurse came into the waiting room.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy and Gabriella stood up and followed the nurse to a room where Gabriella's vitals were taken.

"You gained ten pounds" the nurse said.

Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy smiled. The couple was then escorted to an exam room.

"Gabriella please change into this gown and Dr. Menard will be in shortly" the nurse said handing Gabriella a gown.

The nurse left the room and Gabriella took off her clothes and changed into the gown. She sat on the exam table and looked at Troy.

"Now you can actually see your bump" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

"Yeah" Gabriella said putting her hand on top of his.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Dr. Menard walked in and smiled.

"Hi guys, how are you feeling Gabriella?" Dr. Menard asked as she washed her hands.

"I'm alright. Morning sickness is a pain" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard smiled.

"It will go away soon. Anything that I need to know?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I am showing" Gabriella said looking down at her bump.

Dr. Menard smiled.

"That's great. Let's see how the baby is doing today" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Troy, can you help her lie back?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Of course" Troy said.

Troy helped Gabriella lie down on the exam table and kissed her head softly. Dr. Menard put a blanket over Gabriella's lower body and moved her gown above her small bump. She then turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. After it heated, Dr. Menard took a bottle of gel and squeezed some onto Gabriella's stomach. She then took a wand and moved the gel around Gabriella's stomach. Dr. Menard looked at the monitor and smiled.

"There's your baby, guys" Dr. Menard said pointing to the screen.

Gabriella and Troy smiled.

"Is it healthy?" Gabriella asked.

"Yes, very healthy. Would you like to hear the heartbeat?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy and smiled. The couple nodded and Dr. Menard flipped a switch and a loud thumping noise filled the room. Gabriella had tears running down her face. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly and rubbed her shoulder.

"The heartbeat sounds strong" Dr. Menard said.

Troy and Gabriella smiled.

"I will print these pictures for you guys and I will be back to examine you" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard wiped the gel off of Gabriella's stomach and left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"I can't believe we got to hear the heartbeat. Now, it really feels like I am pregnant" Gabriella said.

"I know and it was loud too. I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said as she leaned in and kissed Troy's lips.

A couple minutes later, Dr. Menard came back into the room and handed the sonogram to Troy.

"I need to examine you, Gabriella. Can you spread your legs for me?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella spread her legs apart and took Troy's hand. Troy entwined their fingers together. Dr. Menard sat at the foot of the bed and examined Gabriella.

"What do you look for when you examine her?" Troy asked curiously.

"I am just making sure that there are no cuts or sores that could potentially make it hard for the baby to come out" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Troy said.

After Dr. Menard finished, she looked at Gabriella.

"Everything looks fine Gabriella. You are twelve weeks correct?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

"Alright, I will see you guys in a month" Dr. Menard said.

"Thank you" Troy and Gabriella said simultaneously.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"He or she is healthy that's the main thing" Troy said.

"Yeah, I'm so happy" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek softly.

"Me too. Come on, let's go home" Troy said as he helped Gabriella get off the exam table.

Gabriella changed back into her clothes. The couple left the office and drove home. Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. Troy and Gabriella got out of the car and walked into the house. The couple walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest and looked at him.

"What's on your mind?" Gabriella asked.

"Nothing is on my mind. I am just really happy that you and the baby are happy and healthy" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

Gabriella smiled. She leaned in and kissed Troy's lips.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too" Troy said.

"When is the baby supposed to start kicking?" Gabriella asked.

"I think in a couple months. The baby is still really small" Troy said.

"Troy?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah sweetie?" Troy asked.

"How far is the cemetery from here?" Gabriella asked.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"It's twenty minutes away. Why?" Troy asked.

"I want to go see my parents" Gabriella said.

Troy rubbed Gabriella's stomach soothingly.

"Okay, let's go" Troy said as he helped Gabriella get up.

The couple left the house. Troy drove to the cemetery and parked his car. Troy and Gabriella got out of the car and entwined their fingers together.

"Do you know where they are?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy followed Gabriella and stopped when she kneeled down in front of two headstones. Gabriella looked at the headstones and had tears running down her face. Troy kneeled down next to her.

"Hi mom and dad. I miss you so much. A lot has happened since I came to see you last. I met a man who found me at a market and he took me in. We developed feelings for each other and I am now pregnant with his child. I wish you were here. I love you so much" Gabriella cried.

Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella and kissed her cheek softly. The couple stood up and walked away from the headstones.

"While we are here, can we go see Nicole and the baby?" Troy asked.

"Sure" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella started walking. Troy lead Gabriella to where Nicole was buried. He kneeled down in front of the headstone.

"Hi Nicole. I miss you every day and our baby. I know that everything happened really fast and that is what makes it hard to get over. I hope that you got to see what our baby looked like while you are in heaven" Troy said.

Troy stood up and Gabriella hugged him. He then moved over and looked at his child's headstone. Troy swallowed hard and sniffled.

"Hi baby girl, I know that we never got to meet but I want you to know that I love you very much. You will always be my daughter even when our baby comes. I miss you every day" Troy said.

Troy stood up and nodded. The couple left the cemetery and started driving.

"Do you feel better?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, I feel more at peace because I went and saw them. What about you? How are you holding up?" Gabriella asked.

"I feel better. I got really emotional when I looked at the baby's headstone" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"That's good though. You let all your emotions out" Gabriella said.

"Yeah. Thanks for thinking about coming here" Troy said as he pulled into the driveway.

Gabriella smiled.

"No problem. Now, I want to take a nap. I'm exhausted" Gabriella said putting her hand on her stomach.

"Baby making you tired?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. The couple got out of the car and walked into the house. Troy and Gabriella walked upstairs and went into their bedroom and lied down on their bed. Gabriella fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. A couple hours later, Gabriella woke up and saw that Troy was no longer in bed. She got up and walked downstairs and saw Troy working on something. Gabriella walked over to her boyfriend and kissed his cheek.

"Hey, did you have a nice nap?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, did you? You weren't in bed when I woke up" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I know and I'm sorry. I just got inspired for a presentation I have to do at work" Troy said.

"Oh" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, I had a dream about it and after I put some thought into the idea, I realized that it could work" Troy said.

"That's great baby. When is your presentation?" Gabriella asked.

"Next week so I have some time. How's the little one?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

"We are fine. A little nauseous, but fine" Gabriella said.

"Do you need to throw up?" Troy asked concerned.

"No, I just feel a little queasy that's all. I'm fine. I promise. Hey, do you want to read some more of the books with me?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, we can read later tonight" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright, I will just finish up and I will be done for the day" Troy said.

Gabriella walked upstairs and picked up her pregnancy book and looked through a few pages. She was so scared to give birth to her baby and she didn't know how to tell Troy. They had talked about the birth before but she didn't really get all of her feelings about it out. Gabriella sighed just thinking about it. Hopefully she will be able to talk to Troy about it when he finished his stuff for work. Two hours later, Troy walked upstairs and went into the bedroom. He looked at Gabriella.

"Sorry I took so long. I just wanted to finish everything" Troy said as he lied down next to Gabriella on their bed.

"It's okay" Gabriella said softly.

"Are you okay?" Troy asked.

"Can I just vent to you? I need to get something off my chest that has been bothering me" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella. He took Gabriella's hand in his.

"You know you can always talk to me. What's going on Gabi?" Troy asked.

"I'm really scared about having this baby" Gabriella said as tears ran down her cheeks.

Troy moved closer to Gabriella and looked at her.

"Baby, what are you scared about?" Troy asked.

"I'm scared about labor and actually giving birth to this baby. I don't know what to expect or know how to take care of a baby. I am really scared, Troy" Gabriella cried.

Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella.

"Baby, I know you are scared. I am too. The birth is the easy part though Gabi. We are going to be great parents to this baby. We will both love him or her and show them how to live their lives. Everything is going to be okay. It's okay to be scared baby, that's normal" Troy said.

Gabriella buried her face in Troy's chest. Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly. He kissed her head softly.

"Hey, look at me baby" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Gabi, I am going to be right next to you, holding your hand. I am going through this with you okay? You have nothing to worry about" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She wrapped her arms around Troy's neck. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

"Is that the only thing that is bothering you?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"Yeah, that's the only thing. Thanks for listening to me" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. He leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"No problem. I want you to talk to me if you have something like that on your mind babe. I'm your boyfriend, I want to know stuff that is going through your head" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I will" Gabriella said.

"Alright, do you want to read your book still or no?" Troy asked.

"I do" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said.

Gabriella picked up her book that was on the side table and put it in her lap. The couple read the book for an hour. While they read, they also discussed what they read with each other so they knew how the other felt about the subject. Troy and Gabriella finished reading for the night and got into bed. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I love you Gabi" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I love you too, Troy" Gabriella said.

"Get some sleep okay? You and the baby need it" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and snuggled into Troy's side and fell asleep. The next morning, Troy woke up and saw Gabriella sleeping. He kissed her head softly and saw her eyes open slowly.

"Good morning" Troy said.

"Good morning" Gabriella said.

"How's baby Bolton doing today?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Just okay?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" Gabriella stopped and got out of bed quickly.

She ran to the bathroom with Troy right behind her. Gabriella kneeled in front of the toilet and regurgitated everything that was in her stomach. Troy rubbed her back soothingly and tried to comfort her in any way he could. Once Gabriella finished, she backed away from the toilet. Troy helped Gabriella stand up. Gabriella walked to the sink and brushed her teeth. After she finished, Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Your bump grew overnight" Troy said as he put his hand on her stomach.

Gabriella looked down and smiled. She put her hand on her bump and rubbed it. Gabriella kissed Troy's lips softly.

"You were saying something before you ran to the bathroom" Troy said.

"I was saying that the baby is okay today" Gabriella said.

"Why is the baby only okay today? Are you feeling alright?" Troy asked.

"I think I am just tired. With the bump growing, my back and feet are starting to hurt. I'm just uncomfortable" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled slightly.

"I'm sorry sweetheart. Maybe you should take a warm bath and so you can relax your muscles" Troy suggested.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Come on, I will help you" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella walked to the bathroom. Troy turned on the water and waited until the tub filled. Once the tub was filled, Troy helped Gabriella get into the water. Gabriella closed her eyes once she was in the tub.

"How does that feel?" Troy asked.

"Perfect. Thank you baby" Gabriella said.

"You are welcome. Yell if you need anything" Troy said as he left the bathroom.

Gabriella lied in the tub in silence. She put her hand on her expanding stomach and smiled.

"I can't wait to meet you sweetheart. Daddy and I love you already" Gabriella said.

An hour later, Gabriella got out of the tub and changed into her pajamas. She walked out of the bathroom and went downstairs. Gabriella walked into the living room and saw Troy reading. She smiled and walked over to Troy and wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and kissed his shoulder.

"You are reading without me? I thought we agreed that we would read together" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled. He kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"Sorry honey. I was just thinking about some things" Troy said.

Gabriella let go of her hold on Troy and walked around the side of the couch and sat next to Troy.

"What are you thinking about?" Gabriella asked.

"Will I be a good father?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips softly.

"Baby, you are going to be an amazing father. I know you will" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I told you already that I am nervous but I just don't want to mess up" Troy said.

"You will make mistakes, Troy. That's normal" Gabriella said.

"The thought keeps bouncing around in my head. But don't worry, okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The couple relaxed around the house and talked about the baby that would be arriving in six months.


	10. It's A Girl

A couple weeks later, Gabriella's stomach had grown tremendously and so had everything about her. She was eating twice as much as she used to, her clothes started to become too tight, and she just felt fat. Troy had tried to reassure her that everything was fine but nothing worked. Gabriella's morning sickness had also been replaced with mood swings. One day, Troy came home from work and found all the lights in the house were off. He turned on the light in the living room and didn't see Gabriella. Troy walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and saw Gabriella curled up in a ball with a blanket over her body on the bed. He walked over to the bed and sat on the edge.

"Hi honey, how are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Fat and disgusting" Gabriella said.

Troy frowned. He leaned over and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Sweetie, you are not fat. You are pregnant" Troy said.

"I don't feel like myself" Gabriella said.

Troy put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"Gabi, I know you don't feel like yourself. You will be back to your old self soon" Troy said.

"Everything just happened so fast. My stomach started growing really fast for the last week" Gabriella said.

"Hey" Troy said putting his finger under Gabriella's chin and bringing it up to his face.

"Hey" Gabriella said.

"You look beautiful babe. Don't even think that you aren't. If you were not upset, I would have been all over you" Troy said.

Gabriella blushed.

"You are full of it" Gabriella said.

"No, I'm not. Everything I said is true. I love you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I love you too" Gabriella said softly.

"What do you want for dinner? I will make it" Troy said.

"Anything" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's cheek softly.

Gabriella got off the bed and followed Troy downstairs. The couple walked into the kitchen. Gabriella sat at the kitchen table and looked at Troy.

"Baby?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah?" Troy asked as he opened the refrigerator.

"Do you want to find out what we are having?" Gabriella asked.

Troy closed the refrigerator and looked at Gabriella.

"I want to find out, but only if you want to" Troy said.

"I want to" Gabriella said.

"At your next appointment we will ask Dr. Menard if we can find out" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy started making dinner. After it was finished, he took out two plates and placed the lasagna that he made onto them. Gabriella took her plate while Troy took his. The couple walked to the kitchen table and sat down and started eating.

"Are you feeling a little better?" Troy asked.

"Yeah. I feel a little better. Thank you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"You are welcome" Troy said.

After the couple finished eating, they washed their plates and walked into the living room and sat on the couch. Gabriella snuggled as close as she could into Troy. Troy put his arm around Gabriella and kissed her head softly.

"Where are we going to put the baby when it's born?" Gabriella asked.

"We can make the guest room the baby's room. We just need to move some things around and bring in the furniture and then we are done" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and put her hand on her bump.

"Taylor called earlier and wanted to come and see you tomorrow. Are you okay with that? I can tell her no" Troy said.

"That's fine. It would be nice to talk to a woman about pregnancy, not that I don't like talking about it with you" Gabriella said.

"You just want to know what to expect" Troy finished.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"Everything feels like it's going really fast. You are already three months pregnant, that's crazy" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I know" Gabriella yawned.

"Baby making you tired?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, a little bit. I think I am going to go to bed" Gabriella said.

"Alright honey" Troy said as he helped her get off the couch.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you. I will be up in a little bit" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

Gabriella walked upstairs and changed into her pajamas and got into bed. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Meanwhile, Troy was downstairs thinking. He was thinking about the baby and Gabriella. He was nervous and scared for the baby to come but he knew that everything was going to be okay. Troy got off the couch and walked upstairs and went into the bedroom. He took off his shirt and pants and got into bed. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest. Troy fell asleep. The next morning, Gabriella woke up and saw Troy sleeping. She smiled and got out of bed carefully. Gabriella walked to the closet and picked out her clothes and walked into the bathroom and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella came out of the bathroom and saw Troy sitting up in bed.

"Good morning" Gabriella said as she kissed Troy's lips.

"Good morning, how are you feeling today?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's stomach.

"I feel good today. What time did Taylor say that she was coming?" Gabriella asked.

"She said eleven" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said looking at the clock that read ten.

The couple walked downstairs and went into the kitchen. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Babe, your bump grew a little bit more" Troy said.

Gabriella looked down and frowned. Troy saw this walked over to her.

"What's wrong?" Troy asked.

"I feel fat" Gabriella cried.

"Hey baby, it's okay. The baby needs somewhere to grow right?" Troy asked. as he wrapped his arms around Gabriella.

"Yeah, but everything in my body isn't the same as it used to be. My boobs have grown, I have to go to the bathroom every five minutes, I am hungry all the time, and I get fatter by the minute and just cry like this" Gabriella cried.

"Gabi, you look beautiful. Yeah your body has changed a little bit but you are still the same Gabi that I love. Don't cry sweetheart" Troy said.

Gabriella sniffled. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly.

"Mood swings suck" Gabriella said wiping her tears away.

"Yeah I know, but we are dealing with them. Are you okay?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"I'm sorry for be so emotional" Gabriella said.

"Baby, don't be sorry. It's normal" Troy said.

"The baby is taking over my body" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her bump.

Troy smiled.

"Gabi, the baby is living inside of you" Troy said.

Gabriella glared at Troy. Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Yes I know that" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed. The doorbell rang and Troy walked to the front door and opened it. He smiled when he saw Taylor.

"Hey" Troy said as he hugged Taylor.

"Hi Troy, how's it going?" Taylor asked.

"Gabi just had a mood swing" Troy said.

"Oh and how was that?" Taylor asked.

"It was alright. She's just up and down today" Troy said.

"Oh" Taylor said.

Troy and Taylor walked into the living room and saw Gabriella sitting on the couch. They walked in and sat down.

"Hi Gabriella, how are you feeling?" Taylor asked.

"I'm okay" Gabriella said.

Taylor looked at Troy.

"I think I am going to go to Chad's so you ladies can talk" Troy said.

"Okay" Taylor said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips.

"Call me if you need anything okay?" Troy said as he put his hand on Gabriella's cheek.

Gabriella nodded.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too" Troy said.

Troy left the house. Taylor looked at Gabriella.

"How's everything going?" Taylor asked.

"Alright. My bump is growing a lot" Gabriella said putting her hand on her stomach.

Taylor smiled.

"That's good. You don't have any more morning sickness?" Taylor asked.

"No, thankfully. But now I have mood swings all the time and it bothers Troy" Gabriella said.

"Troy is still learning about pregnancy like you are Gabriella. He wants you to be happy and not have to deal with mood swings honey" Taylor said.

"I know that. It just bothers me that it bothers him" Gabriella said.

"He knows its normal, Gabriella. Are you going to find out what you are having?" Taylor asked.

Gabriella smiled and nodded.

"We are really excited to find out" Gabriella said.

"Do you want a boy or a girl?" Taylor asked.

"I want a girl. I want to be there for my child and make sure that she is taken care of. I don't want her to end up like how I was" Gabriella said.

Taylor smiled and put her hand on Gabriella's shoulder.

"Gabriella, the baby isn't going to end up like you and you aren't a bad person for going through the things that you went through" Taylor said.

"Thanks Tay" Gabriella said.

"How are you feeling about labor?" Taylor asked.

"I'm scared but I'm not scared about me going through it anyone. Now I am just scared for Troy and the baby" Gabriella said.

"Why are you scared for Troy?" Taylor asked.

"I don't want him to freak out when I am having the baby because of the things he went through with Nicole" Gabriella said.

Taylor smiled.

"You love him a lot don't you?" Taylor asked.

"I love him and the baby more than anything in the world. I could never repay Troy for what he did for me. He gave me a home and love. I couldn't see my life without him" Gabriella said.

Taylor smiled.

"He loves you a lot Gabriella" Taylor said.

"I know" Gabriella said.

"Do you have any names picked out yet?" Taylor asked changing the subject.

"Not yet. It's still early and we want to find out what we are having before we pick names" Gabriella said.

"Oh" Taylor said.

Taylor and Gabriella talked for a little while longer until she had to leave. Gabriella sat on the couch and pulled her shirt above her bump. She put her hand on her stomach and smiled.

"I love you baby" Gabriella said looking at her stomach.

"I love you too baby" Troy said.

Gabriella looked up with a scared look on her face. Troy walked into the living room and sat next to Gabriella.

"I didn't know you were home" Gabriella said.

"I just got here. How was you talk with Taylor?" Troy asked as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

"It was fine. We talked about the baby and everything" Gabriella said.

"Oh" Troy said.

"I'm sorry about earlier" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella and took her hand in his.

"Baby, don't worry about it. You are fine" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

A couple weeks later, Gabriella was four months pregnant and her bump had grown tremendously. Her feet and body ached all the time. Troy tried to make her feel better but nothing seemed to work.

"Babe, we have to go" Gabriella said looking upstairs.

"I'm coming" Troy said walking downstairs.

Troy walked downstairs and entwined Gabriella and his fingers together. The couple left the house and drove to Dr. Menard's office. Troy parked his car and got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her get out of the car. Troy and Gabriella walked into office. Gabriella signed herself in and sat next to Troy.

"I can't wait to find out what we are having" Gabriella said.

"I know" Troy said.

A few minutes later a nurse came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy stood up and helped Gabriella stand up. The couple walked over to the nurse and followed her into a room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. The nurse then escorted the couple to an exam room.

"Gabriella, please take everything off and Dr. Menard will be right with you" the nurse said handing Gabriella the gown.

"Okay" Gabriela said.

The nurse left the room and Gabriella looked at Troy. She changed into the gown and carefully sat on the exam table.

"Are you nervous?" Troy asked.

"A little bit. I just want to know what we are having already" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. There was a knock on the door and Dr. Menard came into the room.

"Hi guys. How are you feeling Gabriella?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I'm okay. The baby has gotten big" Gabriella said as she put her hand on her stomach.

Dr. Menard smiled.

"Yeah, anything I need to know about?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"No, is it possible to find out the sex today?" Gabriella asked.

"Maybe, let's take a look. Troy, can you help her lie back?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Sure" Troy said.

Troy got up and helped Gabriella lie down on the bed. Dr. Menard put a blanket over Gabriella's lower body and raised her gown above her bump. She then squeezed some gel onto Gabriella's stomach. Gabriella took Troy's hand. Dr. Menard took the wand and moved the gel around Gabriella's stomach and stopped.

"There's your baby, guys. Let's see if we can find out the sex" Dr. Menard said pointing to the screen.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard moved the wand around Gabriella's stomach and stopped. She looked at the screen and smiled.

"You are having a girl. Congratulations!" Dr. Menard said.

Troy and Gabriella smiled. Troy leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips passionately and pulled back.

"I love you baby" Troy said.

Gabriella had tears running down her face.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

"I will go print these pictures for you guys and I will be back" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Are you happy?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded as tears ran down her face.

"Aw baby. Don't cry" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I'm crying because I am so happy. I love you so much Troy and can't wait until our daughter is born" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I love you too Gabi. I can't believe we are having a girl" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips. Dr. Menard came back into the room and smiled.

"Are you guys excited?" Dr. Menard asked.

"We're so excited" Gabriella said.

Troy entwined their fingers together.

"I just need to examine you and then you can leave" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said spreading her legs apart.

Dr. Menard sat at the foot of the exam table. She examined Gabriella and came up smiling.

"Everything looks fine. I will see you next month" Dr. Menard said.

"See you" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard left the room. Gabriella changed back into her clothes. The couple left the office and drove home. Troy parked his car in the driveway and got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her out. Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy and kissed his lips passionately.

"Are you happy?" Gabriella asked.

"I'm so happy baby. Our little girl will be here in six months" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. The couple walked into the house and called Troy's parents and told them to come over so they could tell them the news.

"We have to start working on getting her crib and stuff" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, we can move everything out of the guest room and put her crib there. What do you think about that?" Troy asked.

"I like the idea but what if she cries in the middle of the night?" Gabriella asked.

"We can get a baby monitor so we will hear her if she cries" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"But you are not going to be moving anything" Troy said.

"I want to help Troy" Gabriella said.

"I know you do babe but I don't want you or her to get hurt. You can't lift anything heavy" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed and looked at Troy.

"Fine" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you and I know you want to help. I just am looking out for you and the baby" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. The doorbell rang and Troy got up and walked to the door and opened it. He hugged his parents and they walked into the living room.

"Gabriella you look great. How are you feeling?" Lucille asked.

"Thanks Lucille. I feel okay. I am just a little tired and achy" Gabriella said.

"How far along are you?" Lucille asked.

"I am three months" Gabriella said.

"Wow, are you getting excited?" Lucille asked.

"Yeah, I am so excited. But we have some news for you both" Gabriella said entwining her fingers with Troy's.

"What's the news?" Lucille asked.

"Well, we had an appointment with the doctor and we found out the sex of the baby" Troy said.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Lucille asked excitedly.

Troy and Gabriella looked at each other and smiled.

"We are having a girl!" Troy said.

Lucille smiled and hugged and kissed the couple.

"I'm so happy for you guys" Lucille said.

"Thanks mom" Troy said.

The Bolton's and Gabriella celebrated the new addition to their family. A couple weeks later, Gabriella was four and a half months pregnant. Troy was at work and working on a new project that his boss had given him. He felt bad leaving Gabriella alone while she pregnant, especially when she was hormonal and having mood swings but he needed to finish this project because he would make a lot of money. Troy finished working for the day and drove home. He pulled into the driveway and parked his car. Troy walked into the house and didn't see Gabriella. He walked upstairs and went into their bedroom and saw the bathroom door closed. Troy walked over to the door and knocked.

"Baby, are you okay?" Troy asked through the door.

"I'm taking a bath" Gabriella said.

Troy opened the bathroom door and smiled when he saw Gabriella in the tub. He pulled a stool over to the tub and sat down.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Tired and my body aches" Gabriella said moving around in the warm water.

"I'm sorry sweetie. How long have you been in here?" Troy asked.

"A few minutes" Gabriella said.

"Alright, I will let you relax. Call me if you need anything" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I will" Gabriella said.

Troy walked out of the bathroom. He felt horrible that Gabriella had to go through pains and aches to have a baby when he didn't have any of that. The couple was so excited that their little girl would be arriving in four and a half months.


	11. I Am A Big Baby Mama

A week later, Gabriella was in bed asleep. She would get tired really fast. Troy was at work but he would call every hour and make sure Gabriella was doing okay. He cleaned out the guest room so they could start moving furniture into it. The phone started ringing and Gabriella moaned. She opened her eyes and reached for the phone. Gabriella put the phone to her ear with her eyes closed, not bothering to look at the caller ID because she knew it was Troy.

"Hello?" Gabriella answered.

"Hi honey, how are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Tired and you just woke me up from a dream that I was having about the baby" Gabriella said tiredly.

"I'm sorry Gabi. Do you want me to let you go back to sleep?" Troy asked.

"Well that depends on what you wanted to ask me this time" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled through the phone.

"I'm just making sure you are okay baby. But, have you just been sleeping all day?" Troy asked.

"Yes, your daughter is making me tired" Gabriella said.

"She becomes my child when she does something that you don't like?" Troy asked.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Alright, I will let you go back to sleep. I will be home soon okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

The couple hung up the phone. Gabriella snuggled back into the bed and fell asleep. An hour later, a very tired Troy came home. He put his keys on the table and walked upstairs to the bedroom and saw Gabriella sleeping. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek softly and saw her eyes open slowly.

"Hi" Troy said.

"Hi" Gabriella said.

"Are you still tired?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

"Come on, you need to get up and around. Let's take a walk" Troy said.

"Mm Troy I'm tired" Gabriella moaned.

"I know you are sweetheart. But you can't lay in bed all day" Troy said.

Gabriella sat up in bed and held out her hands. Troy helped Gabriella stand up and kissed her lips. The couple walked downstairs and went into the kitchen.

"Let's go for a walk. It will wake you up a little bit" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella left the house and started walking around the neighborhood.

"How was work today?" Gabriella asked as she entwined their fingers together.

"It was fine. I was worried about you but everything was fine" Troy said.

"Baby, you need to focus on work. I just sleep all day" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and looked at Gabriella.

"I know I need to focus but I can't help but think about you at work. You are pregnant and home alone all day long" Troy said.

"Promise me you will focus more on work" Gabriella said.

"I promise" Troy said.

"What are we going to name her baby?" Gabriella asked as she put her free hand on her bump.

"I don't know. We have four and a half months until she comes. We will think of something" Troy said.

"She's going to have the last name Bolton but that's all I know" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"We can make a list and see which one we both like" Troy said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

"Taylor gave me a brochure on a Lamaze class. I told her that I needed to talk to you before I agreed to anything. Do you want to go? You don't have to if you don't want to" Troy said.

"I don't even know what that is" Gabriella said.

"A Lamaze class is where someone basically tells you everything you need to know before the baby comes. Also what things can help you during labor and delivery" Troy said.

"I will try it. It sounds interesting" Gabriella said.

"Alright" Troy said.

"When is this class?" Gabriella asked.

"Next week" Troy said.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

Troy stopped and looked at Gabriella.

"I love you too" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips.

Troy kneeled down and kissed Gabriella's bump.

"I love you baby girl. I could never forget about you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. Troy stood up and the couple walked back to the house. Troy and Gabriella walked into the house and sat down in the living room and talked about the baby. A week later, Gabriella was upstairs trying to find an outfit to wear to the Lamaze class that she and Troy were going to. Troy came into the room and saw Gabriella going through her clothes.

"What are you doing babe?" Troy asked.

"I'm trying to find something to wear for tonight" Gabriella said.

"Gabi, you look fine in what you are wearing" Troy said.

"My bump is sticking out too much" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"That's because the baby is growing. Sweetheart, everyone at this Lamaze class is pregnant, just like you" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"You look beautiful the way you are okay?" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"You don't think my bump is sticking out too much?" Gabriella asked as she put her hand on her stomach.

Troy smiled.

"No and in fact, I think you look sexy" Troy said.

Gabriella blushed.

"You are obligated to say that because you are boyfriend" Gabriella said.

"It's true though baby. You look perfect" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's lips.

"Come on, we are going to be late" Troy said taking Gabriella's hand.

The couple left the house. Troy drove to the local hospital and parked his car. He looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"Are you ready?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

Troy got out of the car and went to the passenger side and helped Gabriella get out. Troy and Gabriella entwined their fingers and walked into the hospital and went to the location that the Lamaze class was being held. The couple walked into the room nervously. A middle-aged woman smiled and walked up to the couple.

"Hi I'm Jen. I am the Lamaze instructor. What's your name?" Jen asked shaking the couple's hands.

"I'm Gabriella and this is my boyfriend Troy" Gabriella said.

"Hi Gabriella and Troy. How far along are you Gabriella?" Jen asked.

"Four and a half months" Gabriella said.

"Okay, take a seat on the ground and we will begin shortly" Jen said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Troy and Gabriella walked over the other side of the room and sat down. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled. Ten minutes later, a crowd of pregnant women and their partners came into the room and sat down. Jen stood in front of the class and begun class. Twenty minutes into the class, Jen started talking about pregnancy.

"You all have probably already experienced this but I am going to talk about it anyway. Mood swings are common in pregnancy and every pregnant woman has them at some point and they are completely normal" Jen said.

Troy and Gabriella looked at each other and smiled. An hour later, Jen talked about labor and delivery and what positions would be good for mothers and their babies.

"Dads and partners, sit in back of the woman you are sitting with and take deep breaths with them. Women, lean back against your partner and follow the fathers instructions on breathing" Jen said.

The class followed what Jen said. Gabriella was leaning against Troy and breathing deeply. Troy smiled at Gabriella. When the class ended, Gabriella and Troy thanked Jen and got into the car and started driving.

"So what did you think?" Troy asked.

"I thought it was interesting. I learned a lot of stuff that wasn't in the books we have been reading" Gabriella said.

"Yeah me too. Do you feel a little better about everything now?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, but we still have four and a half months left before she comes" Gabriella said.

"True but it's better to learn about everything early" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. He got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her out of the car. The couple walked into the house and went into the living room.

"What time is your appointment tomorrow?" Troy asked as the couple sat down on the couch.

"Eleven. The baby is so big" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"She must be taking after her father because my family is really tall and have a lot of muscle" Troy said putting his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"Yeah, how am I going to push her out if she's so big?" Gabriella asked.

"You will have to push her out like any other baby. Come on, let's go to bed. You are exhausted" Troy said standing up and holding his hands out.

Gabriella took Troy's hands and got off the couch. The couple walked upstairs and went into their bedroom. Gabriella took off her shirt and looked at her stomach.

"I feel huge" Gabriella said looking at her bare stomach.

Troy lied down on the bed and smiled.

"We are just having a big baby" Troy said.

"Yeah I guess" Gabriella said changing into her pajamas.

Gabriella got into bed and snuggled into Troy's side and fell asleep. The couple couldn't wait to see what the baby looked like tomorrow. The next day, Gabriella woke up and saw Troy still sleeping. She smiled and kissed Troy's cheek softly. Troy opened his eyes and smiled. He put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"How are you feeling today?" Troy asked.

"Big" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"We better get up or we are going to be late" Troy said looking at the clock.

The couple got out of bed and got dressed. They walked downstairs and left the house. Troy drove to Dr. Menard's office and parked his car. He got out of the car and walked to Gabriella's side and helped her get out. The couple entwined their fingers together and walked into the office. Gabriella signed herself in and sat down.

"Are you nervous?" Troy asked.

"A little bit. Are you?" Gabriella asked.

"A little bit but everything will be fine. I think we are just anxious to see what she looks like" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

A couple minutes later, a nurse came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy and Gabriella stood up and followed the nurse into a small room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. The couple was then escorted to an exam room.

"Gabriella, please change into this gown and Dr. Menard will be in shortly" the nurse said.

"Okay" Gabriella said taking the gown from the nurse.

The nurse left the room. Gabriella took off her clothes and changed into the gown. She then carefully sat on the exam table. Gabriella put her hand on her bump.

"You look cute in a hospital gown" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and blushed.

"No I don't Troy" Gabriella said.

"Yes you do. Your baby bump looks perfect and so do you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Menard came into the room.

"Hi guys, how are you feeling Gabriella?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I am feeling okay. The baby has grown a lot since last month" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard washed her hands and looked at Gabriella's stomach.

"Yeah, she's growing a lot" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up.

"Is there anything that I should know about?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy, who looked back at her.

"No" Gabriella said.

"Alright. Troy, can you help her lie back?" Dr. Menard asked.

Troy helped Gabriella lie down on the bed and kissed her head. Dr. Menard pulled Gabriella's shirt up, exposing her large bump. She then squeezed gel onto Gabriella's stomach and took the wand and moved the gel around. Dr. Menard looked at the screen and smiled.

"There's your baby girl, guys" Dr. Menard said pointing to the monitor.

Troy and Gabriella smiled.

"She's a big baby" Dr. Menard said.

Troy and Gabriella smiled.

"You are 20 weeks correct?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yeah, if she is so big will it be harder to push her out?" Gabriella asked.

"It depends on the size of her head. If her head is big, then it will be harder" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will go print these pictures for you and I will come back and examine you" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"You were right, she is big" Troy said.

"Yeah, I want to know what she looks like" Gabriella said.

"Me too. We just have four more months until we find out" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Dr. Menard came back into the room and smiled. She handed Troy the sonogram and looked at Gabriella.

"Okay Gabriella, I just need to examine you" Dr. Menard said.

"Alright" Gabriella said spreading her legs apart.

Troy took Gabriella's hand in his. Dr. Menard sat at the foot of the bed and examined Gabriella. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly. Dr. Menard came up and smiled.

"Everything looks fine, Gabriella. The baby is healthy and so are you. I will see you guys in a month" Dr. Menard said.

"Thank you" Gabriella and Troy said simultaneously.

Dr. Menard left the room and Troy helped Gabriella sit up and get off the exam table. Gabriella got dressed and looked at Troy.

"Are you ready to go?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah" Troy said.

Gabriella and Troy left the office. Troy pulled out of the parking lot and started driving in the opposite direction of their house. Gabriella looked at Troy confused.

"Babe, where are we going?" Gabriella asked.

"We are going to go look at baby furniture" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said simply.

Troy pulled into the parking lot of a store and parked his car. Troy got out of the car and went to Gabriella's side and helped her out. The couple entwined their fingers together and walked into the store. Troy and Gabriella walked to the cribs and looked at the different styles.

"Which one do you like baby?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked at the cribs and went over to one and smiled.

"I like this one" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at the crib and looked at Gabriella.

"Alright, we will take it" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella paid for the crib and loaded it into the car. The couple got into the car and looked at each other.

"Well, we have the crib" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"I will call Chad and see if he wants to help me put it together" Troy said as he drove home.

"Okay, am I still not allowed to help?" Gabriella asked.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"No baby, you aren't. I just want you and the baby to be safe" Troy said.

"I know but I want to do something" Gabriella said.

"I know, but let me handle it" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. He got out and helped Gabriella get out. They walked into the house and Gabriella went into the kitchen. Troy walked into the kitchen and looked at Gabriella.

"Baby, I am going to bring the crib into the guest room okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said simply.

Troy walked over to Gabriella and wrapped his arms around her from behind and kissed her shoulder.

"Baby, I want you and the baby to be safe, that's all. I promise that I will make it up to you" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"How?" Gabriella asked.

"In sexual favors" Troy said.

Gabriella turned dark red.

"Fine" Gabriella said.

"Okay. I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

"I am going to call Chad and see if he can help me put the crib together" Troy said picking up his phone.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy called Chad and brought the crib into the house. He put the crib package into the guest room and put it on the floor. Troy heard the doorbell ring and walked to the front door and opened it.

"Hey man" Troy said.

"Hey, so where is this crib?" Chad asked.

"It's in the guest room" Troy said as Chad walked into the house.

Gabriella came out of the kitchen and smiled.

"Hi Chad" Gabriella said.

"Hi Gabriella. The baby is getting so big" Chad said.

Troy smiled.

"We are going to put the crib together baby" Troy said.

"Alright, call me when it's done. I want to see it" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips.

Troy and Chad walked into the baby's room.

"Let's get to work" Troy said.

Chad and Troy started to put the crib together.

"How's Gabriella doing with the pregnancy?" Chad asked.

"She's doing okay. She wanted to help put the crib together but I said no. I don't want to risk anything" Troy said.

"Oh, how far along is she?" Chad asked.

"Five months" Troy said.

"Do you know what you are having?" Chad asked.

"Yeah, we are having a girl" Troy said.

"You are going to protect her from men for the rest of her life" Chad joked.

Troy laughed.

"She is going to be my little girl. I can't wait to see what she looks like and hold her for the first time" Troy said.

Chad smiled.

"You are going to be a great father Troy" Chad said.

Troy smiled.

"Thanks Chad, I hope so" Troy said.

Troy and Chad worked on the crib. An hour later, the two men stood back and looked at the finished product. Troy smiled.

"Thanks for helping me out, Chad. I really appreciate it" Troy said.

"No problem, let me know if you need to put together any more furniture" Chad said as the men walked downstairs.

"I will" Troy said.

Chad left the house and Troy walked into the kitchen and saw Gabriella eating a banana.

"We finished the crib" Troy said.

"I want to see it" Gabriella said.

"Come on, I will show you" Troy said as he took Gabriella's hand.

The couple walked to the guest room. Gabriella walked into the guest room and smiled.

"It looks great. I think she will love it. Thank you baby" Gabriella said kissing Troy's lips.

"You are welcome" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella talked about the baby and relaxed around the house. The couple was so excited for their daughter to arrive in four months.


	12. Kickin' It In A New House

That night, Troy was sitting in bed reading a pregnancy book. He wanted to learn as much as he could about pregnancy and birth. Gabriella was in the bathroom taking a bath, to soothe her aching muscles. Gabriella emerged from the bathroom and got into bed. She leaned her head against Troy's shoulder.

"What are we reading about tonight baby?" Gabriella asked putting her hand on her swollen stomach.

"Birth" Troy said.

"What about birth?" Gabriella asked.

"What can be used for pain, when you should go to the hospital, stuff like that" Troy said.

"Oh, when are we supposed to go to the hospital?" Gabriella asked.

"When your water breaks" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Are you going to get an epidural?" Troy asked.

"I don't know. It depends on how bad the pain is. If it's really bad, then I will get it" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said.

Gabriella started kissing Troy's neck and then moved to his lips. Troy kissed Gabriella's softly and pulled back and looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"If I hurt you, let me know" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips hard and slowly started removing her clothing. Gabriella did the same. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips and put his hand on Gabriella's bump. Gabriella pulled back and smiled.

"You ready?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy and Gabriella made love all night long. The next morning, Troy woke up and saw Gabriella sleeping. He smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek softly and got out of bed and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, Troy came out of the bathroom and smiled when he saw Gabriella sitting up in bed.

"Good morning" Troy said as he kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Good morning" Gabriella said.

"I didn't hurt you last night did I?" Troy asked.

"No, you didn't" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

Troy smiled and put his hand on top of Gabriella's.

"Okay, what are we going to do today babe?" Troy asked.

"Relax in bed. The baby is making me tired" Gabriella said closing her eyes.

"Do you want to watch movies while you relax?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"I don't even know why I feel so tired. I'm only five months pregnant" Gabriella said.

"Babe, you are five months pregnant and you are carrying a big baby. That's why" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"I will go downstairs and bring some movies up here okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy walked downstairs and picked out a couple movies and walked upstairs and went into the bedroom. He put a movie into the DVD player and got into bed. Gabriella leaned her head against Troy's shoulder and smiled when The Notebook credits started rolling.

"You know me too well" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"I just wanted to make you happy when the baby is not making you feel that way" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and leaned in and kissed Troy's lips. The couple watched the movie. In the middle of the movie, Gabriella had tears running down her face. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"What's wrong baby?" Troy asked.

"They were so in love and it's so beautiful" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"It's just a movie Gabi" Troy said knowing her hormones were going crazy.

"It's just so beautiful" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. An hour later, the movie ended. The couple looked at each other. Gabriella put her hand on her bump and rubbed it in soothing circles.

"Has she started moving around in there?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled and looked at Troy.

"Yes, but she hasn't started kicking yet" Gabriella said.

"She will start kicking soon and then you will want her to stop" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips and then her bump.

"Yeah, but I may like her kicking me" Gabriella said.

"Maybe you will, we will see. Do you want to watch another movie?" Troy asked.

"Not really" Gabriella said.

Troy's phone rang and he picked it up and looked at the caller ID.

"Hello?" Troy answered.

"Hi honey, how are you?" Lucille asked.

"I'm fine mom, how are you?" Troy asked.

"Good, how is Gabriella?" Lucille asked.

Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"She's doing well. What's up?" Troy asked.

"I was wondering if you guys wanted to come over for dinner tonight. But only if Gabriella feels up to it" Lucille said.

"Hold on, I will ask her right now. Babe, my mom wants us to come over for dinner, do you want to go?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, I will go" Gabriella said.

"Are you sure?" Troy asked.

"Yes baby" Gabriella said.

"Okay. Mom, she said she wants to" Troy said.

"Okay, we will see you then. I love you Troy and tell Gabriella I love her" Lucille said.

"I love you too and I will tell her" Troy said.

Troy hung up the phone and looked at Gabriella.

"My mom told me to tell you that she loves you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I love her too" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you baby" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

A couple hours later, Troy and Gabriella were getting ready to go to Troy's parents house. Gabriella was in the bathroom getting ready. Troy walked into the bathroom and smiled.

"Are you ready to go?" Troy asked.

"Yes" Gabriella said looked at Troy.

"Alright, let's go" Troy said.

The couple walked downstairs and left the house. Troy drove to his parents house and parked his car. He got out of the car and helped Gabriella get out. The couple walked to the front door and Troy rang the doorbell. A couple moments later, Lucille opened the door and smiled.

"Hi guys. Gabriella, you look beautiful. How are you feeling?" Lucille asked.

"I am feeling very heavy. The baby is really big so it's been kind of difficult" Gabriella said as they walked into the house.

"Troy was a big baby too. Have you decided on a name for her?" Lucille asked.

"Not yet, it's still early" Gabriella said looking at Troy.

"Yeah, but I have some names in mind" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled at Troy.

"When are you due?" Lucille asked.

"May 14th" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"Where are you going to put her in your house though Troy?" Lucille asked.

"We are going to put her in the guest room" Troy said.

"You are going to put a newborn baby in the guest room? Troy, you can't do that" Lucille said.

"Why not?" Troy asked.

"You have to be close to the baby when she cries or needs something. You need to start looking for a new house" Lucille said.

Gabriella looked at Troy. Troy sighed.

"I will think about it" Troy said.

"Alright, I am just looking out for you both and the baby that's all" Lucille said.

"I know Lucille. We didn't even think about that" Gabriella said.

Jack came into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys. Wow Gabriella, the baby is getting big" Jack said hugging his son's girlfriend.

"Yeah, she is growing every day" Gabriella said.

"Troy and Gabriella are going to look for a new house" Lucille told her husband.

"Mom, we haven't even talked about it yet" Troy said.

"Troy relax. I am just telling your dad what we were talking about" Lucille said.

The Bolton's and Gabriella talked about the baby and ate dinner. A couple hours later, Troy and Gabriella were driving home. Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Are you mad?" Gabriella asked.

Troy sighed.

"I'm not mad sweetheart. I am just a little stressed out" Troy said.

"We don't have to move Troy. Your mom was only trying to help" Gabriella said.

"I know she was. I'm just stressed out because the baby is coming soon and if we move, we have to find a new house and then move all of our stuff into the new one and it's just stressful to think about" Troy said.

"I understand Troy. But I kind of agree with your mom. After thinking about the baby crying in the middle of the night, even with the baby monitor, we aren't close to her so that we can reach her easily" Gabriella said.

"So you want to move?" Troy asked.

"I think it would be better for us. It would give us a fresh start and we can live our life as a family" Gabriella said.

Troy was silent.

"Let's start looking for a house" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"So you are okay with moving?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, when you put it like that, it made me want to move. I want the three of us to be a family and have a fresh start" Troy said.

"Okay, but don't say yes if you are just trying to make me happy" Gabriella said.

"I'm not baby, I want to move" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will call a realtor that I know and we can start looking" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. He got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her out of the car. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I want to move baby, honestly" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. The couple walked into the house and went upstairs. Gabriella changed into her pajamas and got into bed. Troy came into the bedroom and smiled. He got onto the bed and kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"You tired?" Troy asked as he put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

Gabriella nodded.

"She's making me tired" Gabriella said putting her hand on top of his.

Gabriella closed her eyes but then opened them quickly.

"Babe?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah?" Troy asked.

"I think she just kicked for the first time" Gabriella said.

"Really?" Troy asked incredulously.

"Yeah. Feel right here" Gabriella said putting Troy's hand on her stomach.

The couple waited for the baby to kick when Troy smiled.

"She kicked!" Troy said excitedly.

Gabriella smiled.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too baby" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips.

"I can't believe that in four months she will be here" Gabriella said.

"I know. I am excited" Troy said.

"Me too" Gabriella said yawning.

"Get some sleep Gabi. You and the baby need it" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and snuggled into Troy's chest.

"Good night. I love you" Gabriella said.

"Good night. I love you too" Troy said.

The couple fell asleep and dreamed of what life would be like once their daughter arrived. A couple weeks later, Gabriella was six months pregnant. The couple was so excited that their daughter would be coming in three months. One day, Gabriella woke up and smiled when she felt the baby kicking. She got up carefully and picked out her clothes and went into the bathroom and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella came out of the bathroom and saw Troy shirtless.

"Good morning" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Good morning, why do you get to look hot all the time and I am just fat?" Gabriella asked.

Troy smiled and walked over to Gabriella and kissed her lips.

"You are pregnant sweetie" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"My appointment is at eleven" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said.

"Come on, we better go or we will be late" Gabriella said taking Troy's hand.

The couple walked downstairs and left the house. Troy drove to Dr. Menard's office and parked his car. He then got out of the car and walked to Gabriella's side and helped her get out of the car. The couple entwined their fingers together and walked into the office. Gabriella signed herself in and sat next to Troy. Gabriella leaned her head against Troy's shoulder. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's bump and smiled when he felt the baby kick. A couple minutes later, a nurse came into the room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy stood up and helped Gabriella stand up. The couple then followed the nurse into a room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. Troy and Gabriella were then escorted to an exam room.

"Gabriella, please change into this gown and Dr. Menard will be in shortly" the nurse said handing Gabriella a gown.

The nurse left the room. Gabriella changed into the gown and sat on the exam table.

"I can't wait to see what she looks like" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"I know" Troy said.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Menard came into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys, how are you feeling Gabriella?" Dr. Menard asked as she washed her hands.

"I'm a little tired and I feel heavy but other than that, I feel pretty good" Gabriella said.

"Baby making you tired?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yes and she just started kicking so I feel ten times worse" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"But, you love when she kicks" Troy added.

"Yeah, I love when she kicks but she does it all the time. There are no breaks" Gabriella said.

"She's just letting you know that she's there. Let's see how she is doing today" Dr. Menard said.

Troy helped Gabriella lie down on the bed. Dr. Menard put a blanket over Gabriella's lower body and raised her gown above her bump. Dr. Menard turned on the ultrasound and let it heat up.

"Have you thought about any names?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Not yet, we are currently looking for a bigger house so we have been a little busy" Gabriella said.

"Are you going to stay in the same neighborhood?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yeah, we are just moving into a bigger house" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Dr. Menard said.

After the ultrasound heated, Dr. Menard took a bottle of gel and squeezed some onto Gabriella's stomach. She then took the wand and moved the gel around and looked at the monitor. Dr. Menard stopped moving the wand and pointed to the screen.

"There's your baby" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella and Troy smiled.

"She's gotten so big" Gabriella said.

"Yeah" Troy said.

"You are twenty-four weeks correct?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yes" Gabriella said.

"She looks very healthy and she's not in distress" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella looked at Troy and smiled. Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly.

"Now, I just need to examine you" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said spreading her legs apart.

Troy took Gabriella's hand in his. Dr. Menard sat at the foot of the bed and examined Gabriella.

"Everything looks good Gabriella. She is starting to come down" Dr. Menard said.

"What does that mean?" Gabriella asked.

"It means that the baby is getting ready to come" Dr. Menard said.

"But I am only six months pregnant" Gabriella said.

"Yes, the baby moves down slowly" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"It's normal, don't worry" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will see you guys next month" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard walked out of the room. Gabriella looked at Troy and smiled.

"She's healthy, that's the main thing" Troy said.

"Yeah, thankfully" Gabriella said.

"Come on, let's go home" Troy said.

Gabriella got off the exam table and changed back into her clothes. The couple then left the office and drove home. Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. He got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her get out of the car. The couple walked into the house.

"So I talked to my friend who is a realtor and he found a house that we might like. Do you want to check it out?" Troy asked.

"Okay but is it big enough to fit us and the baby?" Gabriella asked.

"He said it was. Let's take a look at it and we will decide what we will do" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

The couple left the house and drove to the house. Troy got out of the car and helped Gabriella get out. The couple looked at the front of the house.

"What do you think of the front?" Troy asked.

"I like it. It's a two story?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, just like our house now" Troy said.

"Okay, let's go in" Gabriella said taking Troy's hand.

The couple walked into the house and looked around.

"I like how the house is structured" Gabriella said.

"Me too" Troy said.

Troy and Gabriella looked around the house and walked upstairs and looked. They then walked downstairs and left the house. The couple got into the car and looked at each other.

"So what do you think?" Troy asked.

"I like it a lot. I could see us and the baby living there" Gabriella said.

"Do you want to make an offer on it?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Okay, I will be right back" Troy said getting out of the car.

Troy left the car for a minute and then got back into the car. Gabriella looked at Troy.

"I made an offer. The realtor said we should know in a week" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

The couple drove home. A week later, Troy's phone rang.

"Hello?" Troy answered.

"Hi Troy, it's Janet. You made an offer on the house a week ago" Janet said.

"Hi, did you hear anything?" Troy asked.

"They accepted your offer and you can move in as soon as possible" Janet said.

"Thank you" Troy said.

Troy hung up the phone and walked into the kitchen and saw Gabriella making herself a sandwich. He wrapped his arms around Gabriella from behind and kissed her shoulder.

"We got the house" Troy said nonchalantly.

Gabriella turned around and smiled. Tears ran down her cheeks.

"I am so happy! When can we move in?" Gabriella asked.

"As soon as possible" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and kissed Troy's lips.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too baby" Troy said.

A couple days later, Troy and Chad moved all of the furniture into their new house. Troy didn't want Gabriella to help because he didn't want her or the baby to get hurt. The couple was so happy that they found the perfect for their little family to live in and that they only had three months until the baby came.


	13. Homestretch

A couple weeks later, Gabriella was seven and a half months pregnant. The couple had been unpacking all of their belongings and trying to settle down in their new home. Gabriella was downstairs unpacking some things in the kitchen when Troy came into the room.

"Baby, you are supposed to let me handle unpacking everything" Troy said taking the box that Gabriella was unpacking from her.

"I want to help though" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

Troy put his arm around Gabriella and kissed her cheek softly.

"I know you do Gabi. But, you need to let me do it. I don't want you or the baby to get hurt" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"Okay, can we decide on a name for her today?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, what names do you like?" Troy asked.

"I like Allie, Brittney, Samantha, and Lily. What do you like?" Gabriella asked.

"I like Lily, Nicole, Megan, and Rebecca" Troy said.

"So let's narrow it down" Gabriella said.

The couple narrowed the names down to two and was deciding which one they liked better.

"Alright, so we have Lily Nicole Bolton or Allie Nicole Bolton" Troy said.

"I like Lily Nicole Bolton" Gabriella said.

"I do too. So our daughter's name is Lily Nicole Bolton" Troy said.

"Now, that we have a name picked out we can focus more on unpacking" Gabriella said going through another box.

Troy took Gabriella's hand out of the box.

"Babe, let me do it" Troy said.

"What am I supposed to do?" Gabriella asked.

"Go sit down and watch me unpack" Troy said pointing to the chair that was next to the box.

Gabriella sighed.

"I want to do something" Gabriella said.

"I know you do sweetheart, but you can't unpack anything" Troy said.

"Did we get any bananas when we went to get food?" Gabriella asked randomly.

"Yes why are you asking?" Troy asked.

"I'm craving a banana" Gabriella said.

"Oh" Troy said.

Gabriella walked over to the refrigerator and opened it and found the bananas. She peeled one and took a bite out of it. Gabriella then returned to her seat.

"We only have a month and a half until the baby comes" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"I know babe. Are you excited?" Troy asked.

"I am excited but I am scared" Gabriella said.

"Why are you scared?" Troy asked.

"I don't know how much pain I will be in" Gabriella said.

"But you can get an epidural like we talked about" Troy said.

"Yeah, but you can only get it at a specific time" Gabriella said.

"You will be fine baby, I promise" Troy said.

"How do you know I will be okay?" Gabriella asked.

Troy stopped unpacking and sat in a chair and opened his arms. Gabriella walked over to Troy and sat on his lap.

"I know you are going to be okay because you are a strong woman baby. I will be with you the whole time and I won't let anything happen to you. I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and leaned in and kissed Troy's lips.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too" Troy said putting his hand on Gabriella's bump.

Troy smiled when he felt Lily kick his hand.

"She's kicking hard today" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Yeah, she's been doing that all day" Gabriella said.

"Go upstairs and take a nap. You shouldn't be on your feet" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said kissing Troy's lips.

Gabriella walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and lied down. She put her hand on her stomach and felt Lily kick.

"I can't wait to meet you Lily" Gabriella said.

Gabriella fell asleep. A couple hours later, Troy walked into the bedroom and smiled when he saw Gabriella sleeping. He walked over to the bed and kissed Gabriella's cheek. Gabriella opened her eyes slowly and looked at Troy.

"I finished unpacking downstairs. How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"I feel okay. I'm tired" Gabriella said.

"Lily is making you tired?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"She won't stop kicking me" Gabriella said.

"I'm sorry sweetheart. Is there anything I can do?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled and shook her head.

"No baby" Gabriella said.

"Taylor called me and wanted to come visit you and see how you were doing. Are you okay with that?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, just help me up" Gabriella putting her hands out to him.

Troy helped Gabriella get off the bed.

"She's getting so big" Troy said putting his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"I know. Come on, let's go downstairs. I'm starving" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled. The couple walked downstairs and went into the kitchen.

"What can I make you?" Troy asked looking through the refrigerator.

"I want a sandwich with a lot of mustard" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said pulling out the mustard and sandwich meat.

Troy made Gabriella's sandwich and put it on a plate and handed it to her.

"There you go baby" Troy said.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

Gabriella sat down at the table and ate her sandwich.

"These cravings are crazy" Gabriella said.

"Yeah, but at least you crave healthy things" Troy said.

True. What time is Taylor coming?" Gabriella asked.

"She's coming in an hour" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella standing up and taking her plate to the sink.

An hour later, the doorbell rang. Gabriella walked to the front door and opened it and smiled.

"Gabriella, you have gotten so big. Are you sure you are not having twins?" Taylor asked hugging Gabriella.

"I'm sure, Tay" Gabriella said.

"How are you feeling?" Taylor asked.

"Tired, uncomfortable, and hormonal. Oh and fat, couldn't forget about that" Gabriella said.

Taylor smiled.

"You have a month and a half left. Are you excited?" Taylor asked.

"Yeah, I just want her out already" Gabriella said.

"She will be out soon enough. How's Troy handling everything?" Taylor asked.

"I am handling everything fine, Tay" Troy said coming into the room.

Taylor smiled.

"Are you ready to become a daddy Troy?" Taylor asked.

Troy smiled.

"Yeah, I have been ready. I can't wait to hold her in my arms" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled and looked at Taylor.

"When are you due again?" Taylor asked.

"May 14th" Gabriella said.

"Okay, I just wanted to check up on you and see how you and the little one is doing" Taylor said putting her hand on Gabriella's bump.

"Thanks Tay" Gabriella said.

Taylor left the house. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"What are you smiling about?" Gabriella asked.

"You look really pretty today" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Thanks baby. I feel disgusting but thank you" Gabriella said kissing Troy's lips.

Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella and kissed her head. A thought came to Gabriella's head and she looked up at Troy.

"Troy?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah?" Troy asked.

"What if the baby comes early?" Gabriella asked.

Troy pulled back and looked at Gabriella.

"If the baby comes early, then we figure everything out. Are you nervous Gabi?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Troy hugged Gabriella and kissed her cheek.

"She won't be in any danger if she comes two weeks early" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I know you are scared honey, I am too" Troy said.

"You are scared?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course I am. I have no idea what to expect" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Then we can be scared together" Gabriella said kissing Troy's lips.

Troy smiled. That night, Gabriella was sleeping in bed when Troy walked into the bedroom. Troy got into bed and Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest and opened her eyes.

"Hey, go back to sleep honey" Troy said.

"I don't feel good" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Troy asked.

"I just feel cramps and it's bothering me" Gabriella said.

"Do you want to walk around and see if they will stop?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright, come on. I will help you up. Where are the cramps?" Troy asked getting out of bed and helping Gabriella get up.

"My back and my stomach" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

Troy and Gabriella walked around upstairs. Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"I still have cramps" Gabriella said.

"Is it more or less?" Troy asked.

"The same" Gabriella said.

"Are they really painful?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Do you want to go to the hospital and get checked out?" Troy asked.

"Dr. Menard said that cramps were normal but they just hurt" Gabriella said.

"Okay, do you want to take a bath and see if that takes the pain away?" Troy asked.

"I will try it" Gabriella said.

"Okay baby. I will turn on the water for you" Troy said walking into the bathroom.

Troy turned on the warm water and filled the tub. After it was full, Troy helped Gabriella get into the tub.

"How does that feel?" Troy asked.

"A little better" Gabriella said.

Troy pulled a chair over to the tub and sat down. Gabriella closed her eyes and put her hand on her bump.

"Maybe the baby is getting ready to come" Troy suggested.

"But my due date is not for a month and half" Gabriella said.

"I know but she may be ready to come out" Troy said.

Gabriella opened her eyes and looked at Troy.

"That's not funny Troy" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed.

"How are you feeling now?" Troy asked.

"I feel a little better" Gabriella said.

"Good, do you want to come back to bed?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Alright sweetie" Troy said helping Gabriella get out of the tub.

Gabriella changed back into her pajamas and Troy helped Gabriella get back into bed.

"Wake me up if they get worse" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Troy walked to his side of the bed and got in. Gabriella snuggled into Troy's chest and fell asleep. The next morning, Troy woke up and saw Gabriella sleeping. He kissed her head softly and got out of bed and walked downstairs. Troy went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator and pulled out a couple of ingredients to make pancakes for Gabriella. He put all the ingredients together and made the pancakes. Troy put them on a plate and then went back to the refrigerator and pulled out some berries and sprinkled them on top of the pancakes. He then took the plate and walked upstairs. Troy walked into the bedroom and put the plate down and kissed Gabriella's head. Gabriella turned over and opened her eyes.

"Hi sweetheart, how are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"I feel a little better" Gabriella said.

"I made you breakfast" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"You are so sweet. Thank you. What did you make?" Gabriella asked.

Troy picked up the plate and gave it to Gabriella.

"Thank you baby" Gabriella said kissing Troy's lips.

"I knew you aren't feeling well so I wanted to make you breakfast" Troy said.

Gabriella took a bite of the pancake and smiled.

"They are really good" Gabriella said.

"Good. What do you want to do today sweetie?" Troy asked.

"I just want to relax today. She is kicking a lot and I don't want to move" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"Okay, do you want me to bring some movies up here?" Troy asked.

"I want to sleep" Gabriella said.

"You can't sleep all day Gabi" Troy said putting his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"I'm really tired though Troy" Gabriella whined and tears ran down her cheeks.

Troy knew Gabriella was having a mood swing. He smiled and wiped her tears away.

"I know you are tired honey. But you won't be able to sleep tonight if you sleep all day" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed and turned over in bed.

"Baby, come on. You need to get out of bed" Troy said.

"I'm tired" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed.

"Okay, fine. Take a nap" Troy said.

"Thank you" Gabriella said.

Gabriella fell asleep. Troy walked downstairs and picked up his phone. He dialed his mother's number and waited for her to answer.

"Hello?" Lucille answered.

"Hi mom" Troy said.

"Hi Troy. How are you? How's Gabi?" Lucille asked.

"I'm doing okay. Gabi is a little hormonal. She won't get out of bed" Troy said.

"She's exhausted Troy. That's normal" Lucille said.

"Yeah, but she doesn't even want to get out of bed" Troy said.

"Just let her rest honey. The baby is due in a month and a half" Lucille said.

"Okay" Troy said.

Troy and Lucille hung up. A couple hours later, Gabriella walked downstairs carefully and went into the living room and saw Troy sitting down and watching TV. Gabriella sat next to Troy and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Did you get enough sleep?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"I'm sorry that I'm really tired all the time" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Baby, it's okay. I just didn't understand why you were so tired. The baby is due in a month and a half and I know you are really tired and you just want her to be here. I should have been a little more understanding" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

The couple relaxed around the house for the rest of the day. A couple weeks later, Gabriella was eight months pregnant. She and Troy had been working on getting everything ready for when the baby came. Troy had put together all of the baby's furniture and placed it where Gabriella wanted it in the nursery. Gabriella was uncomfortable and complained most of the time.

"Baby, we have to go. We are going to be late for your appointment" Troy said.

Gabriella carefully walked downstairs and looked at Troy.

"Are you ready to go?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, let's go" Gabriella said.

The couple left the house. Troy drove to Dr. Menard's office and parked his car. He got out of the car and went to Gabriella's side and helped her get out. The couple entwined their fingers together and walked into the office. Gabriella signed herself in and sat down next to Troy. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's bump.

"She's kicking hard today. Is she hurting you?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, she's been doing that since this morning. She's not hurting me, it just feels uncomfortable" Gabriella said.

"Okay" Troy said kissing Gabriella's cheek.

A few minutes later, a nurse came into the waiting room with a file.

"Gabriella?" the nurse called.

Troy stood up and helped Gabriella get up. The couple walked hand in hand to the nurse and followed her into a small room where Gabriella's vitals were taken. The nurse then escorted the couple into an exam room.

"Gabriella, please change into this gown and Dr. Menard will be in shortly" the nurse said handing Gabriella a gown.

The nurse left the room and Gabriella changed into the gown. Gabriella then sat on the exam table.

"How are you feeling today babe?" Troy asked.

"Alright. She's just kicking a lot today" Gabriella said.

"I'm sorry Gabi. Maybe she just wants you to know that she's there" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Maybe" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Menard came into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys. How are you feeling Gabriella?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I'm okay. She's kicking me hard today so I feel a little uncomfortable" Gabriella said.

"I'm sorry. Let's see how she's doing okay? Troy, can you help her lie back?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yeah" Troy said.

Troy got up and helped Gabriella lie down on the bed. He kissed her cheek softly. Dr. Menard put a blanket over Gabriella's lower body and raised her gown above her bump. Dr. Menard turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. After the ultrasound heated, Dr. Menard took a bottle of gel and squeezed it onto Gabriella's stomach. She then took the wand and moved the gel around. Dr. Menard looked at the monitor and pointed to the screen.

"There's your baby guys" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella and Troy smiled.

"She's so big" Gabriella said.

"Yeah" Troy said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"Do you have a name for her yet?" Dr. Menard asked.

"We're going to name her Lily" Gabriella said.

"That's pretty. Alright Gabriella, I need to examine you" Dr. Menard said as she wiped the gel off of Gabriella's stomach.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Gabriella spread her legs apart and took a deep breath. She looked at Troy and took his hand in hers. Dr. Menard sat at the foot of the bed and examined Gabriella.

"She's coming down nicely" Dr. Menard said.

"Does that mean she is going to come soon?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah. When you go into labor, call me and I will give you instructions on what to do okay?" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"Alright. I will see you soon then" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said sitting up.

Dr. Menard left the room and Gabriella changed back into her clothes. The couple then left the office and got into the car and drove home. Troy pulled into the driveway and parked his car. He got out and went to Gabriella's side and helped her out of the car. The couple then walked into the house. Gabriella went to the living room and sat down on the couch. She put her hand on her bump and felt the baby kick and smiled. Troy came into the room and sat down next to Gabriella and kissed her head.

"Is she kicking?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy and nodded. Troy put his hand on top of Gabriella's and felt the baby kick.

"I can't wait to meet her" Troy said.

"Me too" Gabriella said.

"Are you scared about going into labor?" Troy asked.

"A little bit" Gabriella said.

"I will be right next to you the whole time. I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and leaned her head against Troy's chest.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

The rest of the day, the couple relaxed around the house. They were so excited that they only had a month left until they would get to meet their baby girl.


	14. I Kept My Promise

A couple weeks later, Gabriella was nine months pregnant. She was so happy that she would finally be able to meet her daughter soon. Troy tried to make Gabriella feel as comfortable as he could. Dr. Menard said that Gabriella could go into labor any day now and the couple was ready. Gabriella walked downstairs and went into Troy's office and looked at her boyfriend. Troy looked up and smiled.

"Hi sweetheart, what's going on?" Troy asked.

"I'm waiting for something to happen" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and motioned Gabriella to sit down. Gabriella sat down and looked at Troy.

"I know you are anxious baby. I am too. But we just have to let nature take its course and wait until something happens" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed.

"We are so close. I just want to go into labor and meet her already" Gabriella whined.

Troy smiled.

"I know you do. But we have to wait. She doesn't want to come out yet" Troy said.

Gabriella put her hand on her bump.

"Did you get time off from work?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, I am going to stay home until you are comfortable with staying with the baby" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said rubbing her stomach.

Troy noticed Gabriella rubbing her stomach.

"Is she kicking a lot today?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, she wants out" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Well Lily, come out please" Troy joked.

Gabriella laughed. Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

That night, Gabriella took a shower and came out of the bathroom with her hand on her bump.

"Troy?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah?" Troy asked.

"I don't feel good" Gabriella said.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"Are you in labor?" Troy asked.

"I don't know, I just don't feel good" Gabriella said sitting on the bed.

"Let's see if you have any contractions. If you do, then we need to call Dr. Menard" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded and rubbed her bump soothingly. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek softly and took her hand in his.

"Everything is going to be okay" Troy said.

Gabriella closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Are you having a contraction?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Just breathe, baby" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and then relaxed and looked at Troy. Troy smiled.

"Is it over?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"Well, I guess you are in labor" Troy said.

"Yeah" Gabriella said.

"Now we just have to wait for your water to break and then we can leave" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. She squeezed her eyes shut and started breathing heavily. Troy rubbed her back soothingly.

"Good job sweetheart. Just keep breathing" Troy said.

"Gabriella continued to breathe through the contraction and then relaxed.

"It hurts" Gabriella said.

"I know baby, I know. Just relax okay? Come on let's go walk around the house. Maybe your water will break" Troy said.

Troy helped Gabriella stand up. Troy and Gabriella entwined their fingers together and walked out of the room. The couple walked downstairs.

"Mm" Gabriella mumbled as she stopped walking and wrapped her arms around Troy's neck and leaned against Troy.

Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly.

"Breathe baby, it's okay" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and relaxed. She looked at Troy. Troy smiled and kissed Gabriella's head softly.

"You okay?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. The couple continued to walk around the house.

"Troy" Gabriella moaned.

"I'm here honey, it's okay. Just breathe" Troy said rubbing Gabriella's back soothingly.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and relaxed.

"When is my water supposed to break?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't know babe. I am sure it will break soon" Troy said.

Gabriella leaned against Troy and gripped his shirt. Troy rubbed Gabriella's back soothingly.

"Just relax sweetie" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and whined in pain. She put her hand on her bump. Gabriella then felt water run down her leg. She looked at Troy.

"My water broke" Gabriella said painfully.

"Okay, let's get you to the hospital. I will go get the bag" Troy said.

Troy ran upstairs and picked up Gabriella's bag. He walked downstairs and took Gabriella's hand in his.

"Let's go have a baby" Troy said.

The couple left the house. Troy helped Gabriella get into the car. He ran to the driver's side and got in. Troy held Gabriella's hand as he started driving to the hospital.

"Ow" Gabriella moaned.

"Just breathe through it honey. It's okay" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and then relaxed. She looked at Troy.

"Are we almost there?" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah baby" Troy said pulling into the hospital entrance.

Troy parked his car and a nurse with a wheelchair came to the car. Troy helped Gabriella get out of the car. Troy and the nurse helped Gabriella sit down in the wheelchair. Troy, Gabriella, and the nurse went into the hospital. The nurse wheeled Gabriella into the elevator and went up to the third floor. Troy, Gabriella, and the nurse got out of the elevator and went into a hospital room.

"Who is your doctor?" the nurse asked.

"Dr. Menard" Gabriella said painfully.

"Okay, I will page her and she will be in shortly. Please take your bra and underwear off and put this gown on " the nurse said handing Gabriella a hospital gown.

The nurse left and Gabriella moaned in pain.

"Breathe honey, you are doing a great job" Troy said rubbing Gabriella's back.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and then relaxed.

"Come on sweetie, I will help you change" Troy said.

Gabriella changed into the hospital gown and then leaned against the bed.

"It hurts" Gabriella cried.

"I know sweetheart, I know. You are doing great" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and then relaxed.

"Ow, that hurt" Gabriella said.

"Let's get you in bed" Troy said helped Gabriella lie down on the hospital bed.

Gabriella put her hand on her bump.

"When is Dr. Menard going to come?" Gabriella asked.

"I don't know baby. But she will be here okay? Don't worry" Troy said entwining his fingers together with Gabriella's.

Gabriella put her free hand on her bump. Dr. Menard came into the hospital room and smiled.

"Hi guys, so Gabriella are you ready?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I think so" Gabriella said painfully.

Troy kissed Gabriella's hand. Gabriella started breathing heavily. Troy rubbed Gabriella's back.

"Just breathe, Gabriella" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella breathed through the contraction and relaxed.

"You okay?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"Gabriella, I just need to check and see how much you are dilated okay? Can you spread your legs for me?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella spread her legs apart and took Troy's hand. Dr. Menard put a pair of gloves on and sat down at the foot of the bed. She examined Gabriella and came up smiling.

"You are three centimeters, Gabriella" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I will come back to check on you in a little while. Just relax okay?" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said painfully.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy put his hand on Gabriella's head.

"Are you having a contraction babe?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded and started breathing heavily.

Troy put his hand on Gabriella's stomach and massaged it gently. Gabriella finished breathing through the contraction and relaxed.

"It is so painful" Gabriella said.

"I know it is, but think of it this way, the baby is going to come soon" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy with fear and anger in her eyes.

"Yeah but I still have to push her out, Troy. She's not a tiny baby" Gabriella said.

Troy sighed.

"I know she's not, babe. I was just saying that she was almost here" Troy said.

Gabriella moaned and gripped Troy's hand. She breathed through the contraction and relaxed. This went on for five hours until Dr. Menard came into the room. Gabriella was lying on her side with tears running down her face. Troy was rubbing her back and trying to get Gabriella to breathe through the contraction.

"How are you feeling?" Dr. Menard asked.

"I'm tired and in pain" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard smiled.

"I need to check you" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said spreading her legs apart.

Dr. Menard put a pair of gloves on and sat on the edge of the bed and examined Gabriella. She came up and smiled.

"You are five centimeters, Gabriella. Do you want an epidural?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yes, it hurts so bad" Gabriella cried.

Troy kissed Gabriella's head softly.

"Everything is okay, baby. Just relax" Troy said.

Gabriella breathed shakily through the contraction. After it was over, Dr. Menard looked at Gabriella.

"I will go get the anesthesiologist and he will administer the epidural for you" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said quietly.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"You are halfway babe. We are so close to meeting our baby" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded tiredly. There was a knock on the door and a tall young man, who was probably in his thirties, came into the room.

"Hi Gabriella, I'm Ryan and I will be administering your epidural" Ryan said.

"Hi Ryan" Gabriella said painfully.

Troy took Gabriella's hand in his. Gabriella breathed through the contraction and relaxed.

"I need you to sit up and lean against your husband and be completely still while I administer the epidural okay?" Ryan said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy stood up. He and Ryan helped Gabriella sit up. Gabriella leaned against Troy. Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella and kissed her head softly.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

"Alright, Gabriella. I am going to put the needle in" Ryan said.

"Okay" Gabriella said gripping Troy's shirt.

Ryan administered the epidural and smiled.

"Gabriella, we are just going to move you back okay? You should start feeling the effect of the epidural in about fifteen minutes" Ryan said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Ryan left the room. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek softly.

"How are you feeling babe?" Troy asked.

"I don't feel anything yet. I still feel the pain" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"You will start feeling something in a couple minutes" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. Twenty minutes later, Gabriella felt the effect of the epidural and relaxed. Troy smiled when he saw Gabriella starting to fall asleep.

"I see that the epidural kicked in" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded tiredly.

"Get some sleep sweetheart. You need to keep your strength up" Troy said.

Gabriella fell asleep. Troy stood up and kissed Gabriella's head.

"I'm going to call my parents and tell them you are in labor okay?" Troy said.

"Okay" Gabriella said sleepily.

Troy walked out of the hospital room and called his mother.

"Hello?" Lucille answered.

"Hi mom" Troy said.

"Hi honey, what's going on?" Lucille asked.

"Gabriella's in labor" Troy said.

"Really? Oh I'm so happy. How is she doing?" Lucille asked.

"She's okay. She just got the epidural so she's sleeping" Troy said.

"Okay, well keep us updated on how everything is going. I love you Troy and tell Gabriella that I love her" Lucille said.

"I love you too mom. I will keep you updated. I have to go back into her room so I have to go" Troy said.

"Alright honey, I will talk to you later" Lucille said.

Troy hung up the phone and walked back into Gabriella's hospital room and sat down on the chair that was next to the bed. Gabriella opened her eyes and smiled.

"Hi beautiful, how are you feeling?" Troy asked.

"I'm okay. I'm really tired" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"Do you feel anything?" Troy asked.

"No, I don't feel any pain. I just feel pressure when I have a contraction" Gabriella said.

"Okay. I talked to my mom and she told me to tell you that she loves you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"I love her too" Gabriella said putting her hand on her bump.

"Are you getting excited?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, but I am really nervous" Gabriella said.

"You will be okay sweetie. I will be right here, holding your hand. You have nothing to worry about" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I just want to know who she looks like and what she looks like" Gabriella said.

"Well, in a couple hours we will find out" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too babe. You are doing so well. I'm proud of you" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled.

"Thanks" Gabriella said.

A couple hours later, Dr. Menard came into the room and smiled.

"How are you doing Gabriella? Did the epidural help a little bit?" Dr. Menard asked.

"Yeah, I don't feel anything" Gabriella said.

"Good. I need to check you and see how much you have progressed" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said moving her legs around.

Troy smiled.

"Do you need a little help?" Troy asked.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"I can't move anything" Gabriella said.

"That's because you have the epidural. I will move your legs" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard moved Gabriella's legs apart. She then put a pair of gloves on and examined Gabriella and looked up at the couple.

"You are seven centimeters. That's pretty good for someone who has only been in labor for ten hours and is a first time mother" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella smiled and looked at Troy.

"That's great babe" Troy said.

"How long do you think until she's here?" Gabriella asked.

"I think she will be here in about five or six hours. It all depends on her" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella nodded.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

"I will come back and check on you in an hour and see where you are" Dr. Menard said.

"Alright" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard left the room. Troy looked at Gabriella and smiled.

"She's almost here" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded.

"I can't wait to meet her" Gabriella said.

An hour later, there was a knock on the door. Troy walked to the door and opened it. He smiled when he saw his mother.

"Hi mom" Troy said.

"Hi sweetheart, how's everything going?" Lucille asked.

"Everything is going fine. Gabriella's seven centimeters so the baby will be here soon" Troy said.

"That's great" Lucille said.

Gabriella moaned. Troy walked over to the bed and kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"Are you okay sweetie?" Troy asked.

"I feel a lot of pressure" Gabriella said.

"Dr. Menard said that was normal honey. My mom is here" Troy said.

Gabriella looked over at Lucille and smiled.

"Hi honey" Lucille said.

"Hi" Gabriella said.

"How are you feeling?" Lucille asked.

"I feel okay. I feel a lot of pressure, but other than that I am okay" Gabriella said.

Lucille smiled.

"I just wanted to come by and see how you were doing. I will let you rest" Lucille said.

Troy walked his mother out and then walked to his seat and sat down. He took Gabriella's hand in his.

"You are doing so well baby" Troy said.

Gabriella smiled. A couple minutes later, Dr. Menard came into the room.

"Let's see how much you have progressed" Dr. Menard said putting her gloves on.

Dr. Menard examined Gabriella and came up smiling.

"You are nine centimeters, Gabriella. I am going to get some equipment and a couple of my nurses and we will get started" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Dr. Menard left the room.

"Troy, I'm scared" Gabriella said.

Troy's face softened. He looked at Gabriella.

"Baby, you are going to be fine. I promise" Troy said.

Gabriella sighed and put her hand on her bump. Troy kissed Gabriella's cheek. He put his finger under Gabriella's chin.

"I love you" Troy said.

"I love you too" Gabriella said.

Troy kissed Gabriella's lips softly. Gabriella pulled back slowly and moaned.

"Is the epidural wearing off?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. Dr. Menard smiled.

"That's normal Gabriella" Dr. Menard said as she set up the equipment.

After Dr. Menard was set up, she sat down at the foot of the bed.

"Alright, I am going to check you and see where we are" Dr. Menard said.

Dr. Menard examined Gabriella and smiled.

"Gabriella, you are fully dilated. You need to listen to me carefully okay? When you feel the next contraction, you need to push for ten seconds. Troy, you need to hold one of her legs and the nurse will hold the other" Dr. Menard said.

"Okay" Gabriella said.

Troy held Gabriella's leg and looked at Gabriella and smiled. Gabriella moaned in pain.

"It's here" Gabriella said.

"Okay Gabriella, take a deep breath and push" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella took a deep breath and pushed.

"Good job baby" Troy said.

Gabriella fell back against the bed after the contraction ended.

"It hurts" Gabriella said.

"I know it does honey. But you are doing great" Troy said.

Gabriella started breathing heavily.

"Are you having another one?" Dr. Menard asked.

Gabriella nodded and started pushing without any instruction.

"Good push, Gabi" Troy said.

Gabriella fell back against the bed and screamed.

"I can't push anymore" Gabriella cried.

"Baby, yes you can. You are almost there" Troy said.

"Her head is really big, Gabriella. That is why it hurts" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella took a deep breath and pushed.

"You are doing so well baby" Troy said.

"Shut up!" Gabriella screamed.

Troy's eyes widened.

"Keep pushing Gabriella. You are doing great. I can see her head" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella fell back against the bed and cried.

"It hurts so bad" Gabriella said.

"I know it hurts, honey. You are so close. Her head is almost out. You need a couple more good pushes and her head will be out" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella nodded tiredly. She took a deep breath and started pushing again.

"Good push baby" Troy said.

Gabriella screamed and fell back against the bed.

"One more push until her head is out, Gabriella. That is the worst part" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"Take a deep breath and push, baby" Troy said.

Gabriella pushed hard and screamed as she fell back against the bed.

"Her head is out. Troy, do you want to see?" Dr. Menard asked.

Troy looked over Gabriella's legs and smiled when he saw his daughter's head.

"She's beautiful sweetheart" Troy said.

Gabriella nodded tiredly.

"I need one last big push Gabriella and she will be here" Dr. Menard said.

Gabriella pushed hard and screamed. She heard Troy and Dr. Menard encouraging her. Gabriella fell back against the bed when she heard a cry.

"She's here baby girl. You did amazing" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips.

Dr. Menard placed the baby on Gabriella's chest. Gabriella looked at her daughter and couldn't help but cry.

"Oh my god" Gabriella said.

"She's beautiful" Troy said.

Gabriella looked at Troy.

"I love you" Gabriella said.

"I love you too" Troy said kissing Gabriella's lips.

The couple looked at their daughter and smiled.

"I can't believe she's here" Gabriella said.

"I know" Troy said.

"What's her name?" Dr. Menard asked.

Troy and Gabriella looked at each other and then at Dr. Menard.

"Lily Bolton" Gabriella said proudly.

"Alright, we need to clean her up and we will bring her right back" Dr. Menard said as a nurse took Lily out of Gabriella's arms.

Troy looked at Gabriella.

"I kept my promise" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled.

"What promise?" Troy asked.

"I promised that I wouldn't die on you" Gabriella said.

Troy smiled and leaned in and kissed Gabriella's lips.

"I love you so much" Troy said.

"I love you so much too. I'm so happy she's here" Gabriella said.

A couple minutes later, the nurse brought Lily back to Gabriella and put her in her arms. Troy and Gabriella were so happy that Lily was here safe and sound.


End file.
